A couple of hours ago, I received word that an AA friend who is married to an Urhobo man has been sent packing, by her husband, back to her mother's house with her 2-week old twin boys who were born with albinism. The husband has filed for divorce and expressed no interest in seeing his sons, calling the babies 'cursed' and 'freaks of nature'. She and her family members are forbidden to come by the house and, the husband has told her and her family not to bother calling, because he will not pick up.

She is devastated and her family is rightly angry and confused, because they don't understand why the husband is acting so crazy over what is nothing more than a genetic defect. And why file for divorce, after almost three years of marriage? Since my friend is not one to divulge too many details about her marriage, I thought it best to e-mail her links to the following article and videos that could give her some insight into the husband's reaction, not that it will help, because according to her sister, the husband is standing firm - there's no changing his mind.

ARTICLE:

Albinos And Their Many Predicaments In Nigeria
by James Uzondu

"Nigerians have misconceptions about albinos. These misconceptions, no doubt have been responsible for the discrimination against them in the country."-Rita Onuoha

"Nigerians have misconceptions about albinos. These misconceptions, no doubt have been responsible for the discrimination against them in the country. But experts have made it clear that albinism is just a hereditary condition which shows an absence or lack of the dark pigment, melanin, in the skin, hair and eyes and that it has nothing to do with human intelligence. Many top Nigerians have expressed that most of these persons living with the skin pigmentation problem are highly intelligent and educated and should not be allowed to suffer discrimination."

Read more: http://www.nigeriannewsworld.com/content/albinos-and-their-many-predicaments-nigeria

VIDEOS:

Dealing With Albinism In Nigeria


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IbxfAQAEFc&feature=player_detailpage


Dealing With Albinism In Nigeria 2


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXxZ79M_EIU&feature=player_detailpage


Nigeria News: Albinos in Nigeria


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF1foSSbhUA&feature=player_detailpage


Albino Foundation Condemns Killing Of Albinos In Nigeria


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31_uzJ67EYY&feature=player_detailpage


GROWING UP DIFFERENT IN NIGERIA - Part One


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFkyhEhDZ5o&feature=player_detailpage


GROWING UP DIFFERENT IN NIGERIA - Part Two


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rt4PZSoF2B0&feature=player_detailpage

No wonder one mother refused to allow her daughter marry a Nigerian man.

Op the man must have specifically asked her if she had albinos in her family and she said 'no'.
Only to deliver and he got the shock of his life.

Sending this your long epistle to him am not sure it will help. It sounds more like he is feeling betrayed.

I am ashamed to say I'm not comfortable around albinoes. Lord forgive me but its one of the deal breakers for me in a relationship. I know its not their fault and I'm proud to say I have three of them as my friends, but..hmmn. It ain't easy.

Op put yourself in the man's shoes. Be honest. How would you react?

5minsmadness: Op the man must have specifically asked her if she had albinos in her family and she said 'no'.
Only to deliver and he got the shock of his life.

Sending this your long epistle to him am not sure it will help. It sounds more like he is feeling betrayed.

I am ashamed to say I'm not comfortable around albinoes. Lord forgive me but its one of the deal breakers for me in a relationship. I know its not their fault and I'm proud to say I have three of them as my friends, but..hmmn. It ain't easy.

Op put yourself in the man's shoes. Be honest. How would you react?

Interestingly enough, my friend doesn't, but there are three (2 men & 1 woman) on MY side of the family. And I attended school with fraternal twins who were also albinos.

As for the husband asking my friend if albinism ran in her family, I have no idea. But why would he even ask her such a question? But I have heard of people asking each other if they were a 'sickler' or carried the sickle cell trait. That's what's dreaded over here, next to asthma, in the AA community. As for my reaction, I would only be concerned about the physical problems and limitations associated with albinism.

Albinism, is just a quirk of nature. Even animals like squirrels and opossums can produce albino offspring.

Albinism doesn't carry the same type of stigma over here that it does in Nigeria.

However, albino kids are sometimes teased in school and, as they get older are a bit shunned in the dating area.

But still, they aren't generally discriminated against or rejected by their parents.

As far as me sending my 'epistle ' to the husband, best I leave that to my friend.

Why are you making it look like albinos are not human beings or have deformities. Which type of bush meat husband did hshe marry sef. E no read biology for school abi im biology teacher no dey teach them. That's how another nigerian man wanted to divorce his wife because she gave birth to only female kids ad if the biology teacher didn't teach him whatever sperm whether x or y he deposits inside the wife is what she will release 9 months time tufiaaaaa



abeg I don taya for this set of people. I give up. Later they will be the first to call women fish brains

5minsmadness: Op the man mustave specifically asked her if she had albinos in her family and she said 'no'.
Only to deliver and he got the shock of his life.

Sending this your long epistle to him am not sure it will help. It sounds more like he is feeling betrayed.

I am ashamed to say I'm not comfortable around albinoes. Lord forgive me but its one of the deal breakers for me in a relationship. I know its not their fault and I'm proud to say I have three of them as my friends, but..hmmn. It ain't easy.

Op put yourself in the man's shoes. Be honest. How would you react?

Exactly. In fact I have seen cute albino ladies with clean skin, no freckles albinos usually have. When you see a well taken care of albino you sef go ean born albino

zboyd:

Interestingly enough, my friend doesn't, but there are three (2 men & 1 woman) on MY side of the family. And I attended school with fraternal twins who were also albinos.

As for the husband asking my friend if albinism ran in her family, I have no idea. But why would he even ask her such a question? But I have heard of people asking each other if they were a 'sickler' or carried the sickle cell trait. That's what's dreaded over here, next to asthma, in the AA community. As for my reaction, I would only be concerned about the physical problems and limitations associated with albinism.

Albinism, is just a quirk of nature. Even animals like squirrels and opossums can produce albino offspring.

Albinism doesn't carry the same type of stigma over here that it does in Nigeria.

However, albino kids are sometimes teased in school and, as they get older are a bit shunned in the dating area.

But still, they aren't generally discriminated against or rejected by their parents.

As far as me sending my 'epistle ' to the husband, best I leave that to my friend.

The evils of ignorance...smh

That aside, both videos are really insightful and thought provoking. Hopefully, her experiences, personal struggles and eventual success should help encourage and motivate others out there (including the parents of albino children), who are in the same boat.

Pretty girl.

She delivered a killing punch when she stated: "I wouldn't change my skin colour for anything in the world, nor would I want to look like you!"

SAMBARRY: Exactly. In fact I have seen cute albino ladies with clean skin, no freckles albinos usually have. When you see a well taken care of albino you sef go ean born albino

Most albinos don't even have albino off springs, my albino neighbor has 6 kids, all dark. Some actually do look very cute. its even possible that the albinism trait is from the man's genes, yet he sent his wife away.

beeevan:

Most albinos don't even have albino off springs, my albino neighbor has 6 kids, all dark. Some actually do look very cute. its even possible that the albinism trait is from the man's genes, yet he sent his wife away.

Nah, I think the trait has to be present in both parents for them to have Albino kids.

Anyway, the man's actions were foolhardy because without proper family background checks, his next partner may also have the trait, thereby increasing the possibility of them having an albino child.

EfemenaXY:

Nah, I think the trait has to be present in both parents for them to have Albino kids.

Anyway, the man's actions were foolhardy because without proper family background checks, his next partner may also have the trait, thereby increasing the possibility of them having an albino child.

Really? Wow! I thought that the gene being inherent in a parent alone is enough to produce an albino child, that means the chances of a child turning out an albino is really slim and both have to possess the trait for it to occur,right?

beeevan:

Really? Wow! I thought that the gene being inherent in a parent alone is enough to produce an albino child, that means the chances of a child turning out an albino is really slim and both have to possess the trait for it to occur,right?

Yep.

Genetics of Albinism

The genes for OCA are located on “autosomal” chromosomes. Autosomes are the chromosomes that contain genes for our general body characteristics, contrasted to the sex chromosomes. We normally have two copies of these chromosomes and the genes on them – one inherited from our father, the other inherited from our mother. Neither of these gene copies is functional in people with albinism. However, albinism is a “recessive trait”, so even if only one of the two copies of the OCA gene is functional, a person can make pigment, but will carry the albinism trait. Both parents must carry a defective OCA gene to have a child with albinism. When both parents carry the defective gene (and neither parent has albinism) there is a one in four chance at each pregnancy that the baby will be born with albinism. This type of inheritance is called “autosomal recessive” inheritance.

Ocular albinism (OA1) is caused by a genetic defect of the GPR143 gene that plays a signaling role that is especially important to pigmentation in the eye. OA1 follows a simpler pattern of inheritance because the gene for OA1 is on the X chromosome. Females have two copies of the X chromosome while males have only one copy (and a Y chromosome that makes them male). To have ocular albinism, a male only needs to inherit one defective copy of the gene for ocular albinism from his carrier mother. Therefore almost all of the people with OA1 are males. Indeed, parents should be suspicious if a female child is said to have ocular albinism.

For couples who have not had a child with albinism, there is no simple test to determine whether a person carries a defective gene for albinism. Researchers have analyzed the DNA of many people with albinism and found the changes that cause albinism, but these changes are not always in exactly the same place, even for a given type of albinism. Moreover, many of the tests do not find all possible changes.

Therefore, the tests for the defective gene may be inconclusive.

If parents have had a child with albinism previously, and if that affected child has had a confirmed diagnosis by DNA analysis, there is a way to test in subsequent pregnancies to see if the fetus has albinism. The test uses either amniocentesis (placing a needle into the uterus to draw off fluid) or chorionic villous sampling (CVS). Cells in the fluid are examined to see if they have an albinism gene from each parent.

For specific information and genetic testing, seek the advice of a qualified geneticist or genetic counselor.

Read more: http://www.albinism.org/publications/what_is_albinism.html

^^ A complicated read (for some), but thanks for buttressing my point.

zboyd: Both parents must carry a defective OCA gene to have a child with albinism. When both parents carry the defective gene (and neither parent has albinism) there is a one in four chance at each pregnancy that the baby will be born with albinism. This type of inheritance is called “autosomal recessive” inheritance.

EfemenaXY: ^^ A complicated read (for some), but thanks for buttressing my point.

You're welcome.

I learned something myself.

Superstition overpowered logic. Smh.

5minsmadness: Op the man must have specifically asked her if she had albinos in her family and she said 'no'.
Only to deliver and he got the shock of his life.

Sending this your long epistle to him am not sure it will help. It sounds more like he is feeling betrayed.

I am ashamed to say I'm not comfortable around albinoes. Lord forgive me but its one of the deal breakers for me in a relationship. I know its not their fault and I'm proud to say I have three of them as my friends, but..hmmn. It ain't easy.

Op put yourself in the man's shoes. Be honest. How would you react?

The gene for albinism is a recessive one so wherever it occurs alongside the normal gene for melanin production,it will always be over shadowed by the gene for color which is the dominant.
It only finds expression where it occurs alone meaning that for that paritcular offspring to show phenotypic expression of albinism,the both gametes that met at the point of fertilization each carried the genes for albinism.

So he should stop asking if she has albinos in her lineage. The answer is that both of them do have the recessive genes for albinism.
He may never have known anyone in his family with the condition probably because non of them ever mated with anyone who had the recessive gene too.
Now he has and here's the result.
His next kids could be normal colored too.

The only other condition which can give rise to this is a mutation(very very rare too)


I feel greatly pained when I see 'educated' people make such discriminatory remarks against others.

zboyd: Genetics of Albinism

The genes for OCA are located on “autosomal” chromosomes. Autosomes are the chromosomes that contain genes for our general body characteristics, contrasted to the sex chromosomes. We normally have two copies of these chromosomes and the genes on them – one inherited from our father, the other inherited from our mother. Neither of these gene copies is functional in people with albinism. However, albinism is a “recessive trait”, so even if only one of the two copies of the OCA gene is functional, a person can make pigment, but will carry the albinism trait. Both parents must carry a defective OCA gene to have a child with albinism. When both parents carry the defective gene (and neither parent has albinism) there is a one in four chance at each pregnancy that the baby will be born with albinism. This type of inheritance is called “autosomal recessive” inheritance.

Ocular albinism (OA1) is caused by a genetic defect of the GPR143 gene that plays a signaling role that is especially important to pigmentation in the eye. OA1 follows a simpler pattern of inheritance because the gene for OA1 is on the X chromosome. Females have two copies of the X chromosome while males have only one copy (and a Y chromosome that makes them male). To have ocular albinism, a male only needs to inherit one defective copy of the gene for ocular albinism from his carrier mother. Therefore almost all of the people with OA1 are males. Indeed, parents should be suspicious if a female child is said to have ocular albinism.

For couples who have not had a child with albinism, there is no simple test to determine whether a person carries a defective gene for albinism. Researchers have analyzed the DNA of many people with albinism and found the changes that cause albinism, but these changes are not always in exactly the same place, even for a given type of albinism. Moreover, many of the tests do not find all possible changes.

Therefore, the tests for the defective gene may be inconclusive.

If parents have had a child with albinism previously, and if that affected child has had a confirmed diagnosis by DNA analysis, there is a way to test in subsequent pregnancies to see if the fetus has albinism. The test uses either amniocentesis (placing a needle into the uterus to draw off fluid) or chorionic villous sampling (CVS). Cells in the fluid are examined to see if they have an albinism gene from each parent.

For specific information and genetic testing, seek the advice of a qualified geneticist or genetic counselor.

Read more: http://www.albinism.org/publications/what_is_albinism.html

Oh you beat me to it.
I was trying to give a layman's approach to the explanation.
I studied genetics (elective four semesters). You can imagine my frustration when most people I see all the time prefer to believe in superstition and 'generational curses' for diseases that are purely and plainly hereditary.

The family enemy that doesn't let them live past 50yrs is off somewhere again making more juju to kill the last standing male child of the family after killing off his 3 elder brothers.
And everyone is busy pointing finger at the uncle whose house in across the road.


Meanwhile the whole family is suffering from a hereditary condition that manifests around middle age(like serious hypertension or angina)

It's depressing.

cococandy:
Oh you beat me to it.
I was trying to give a layman's approach to the explanation.
I studied genetics (elective four semesters). You can imagine my frustration when most people I see all the time prefer to believe in superstition and 'generational curses' for diseases that are purely and plainly hereditary.

The family enemy that doesn't let them live past 50yrs is off somewhere again making more juju to kill the last standing male child of the family after killing off his 3 elder brothers.
And everyone is busy pointing finger at the uncle whose house in across the road.


Meanwhile the whole family is suffering from a hereditary condition that manifests around middle age(like serious hypertension or angina)

It's depressing.

Agreed.

But what of this?

I know a couple where the man has sickle cell disease and the wife has the trait. After 9 years together they decide to have a baby, in the off-chance that the baby would only be born with just the trait. Now their geneticist had already told them that the baby would most likely be born with sickle cell disease. But they ignored him. They said they were going to put it in God's hands.

Long story short, girl baby was born 2 months premature. At around 2-3 months old, she was found to have sickle cell disease, asthma, acid reflux, and is lactose intolerant.

So now, the wife has to look after two who are in and out of the hospital, due to a crisis.

Both sides of the family love the child but call her and her husband fools, for bringing the baby into the world, because of the disease and her other health problems.

Why didn't they adopt?
These kinds of stories piss me off

zboyd:

Agreed.

But what of this?

I know a couple where the man has sickle cell disease and the wife has the trait. After 9 years together they decide to have a baby, in the off-chance that the baby would only be born with just the trait. Now their geneticist had already told them that the baby would most likely be born with sickle cell disease. But they ignored him. They said they were going to put it in God's hands.

Long story short, girl baby was born 2 months premature. At around 2-3 months old, she was found to have sickle cell disease, asthma, acid reflux, and is lactose intolerant.

So now, the wife has to look after two who are in and out of the hospital, due to a crisis.

Both sides of the family love the child but call her and her husband fools, for bringing the baby into the world, because of the disease and her other health problems.

cococandy: Why didn't they adopt?
These kinds of stories piss me off

Some people don't want to adopt.

cococandy:

The gene for albinism is a recessive one so wherever it occurs alongside the normal gene for melanin production,it will always be over shadowed by the gene for color which is the dominant.
It only finds expression where it occurs alone meaning that for that paritcular offspring to show phenotypic expression of albinism,the both gametes that met at the point of fertilization each carried the genes for albinism.

So he should stop asking if she has albinos in her lineage. The answer is that both of them do have the recessive genes for albinism.
He may never have known anyone in his family with the condition probably because non of them ever mated with anyone who had the recessive gene too.
Now he has and here's the result.
His next kids could be normal colored too.

The only other condition which can give rise to this is a mutation(very very rare too)


I feel greatly pained when I see 'educated' people make such discriminatory remarks against others.

And @zboyd
So from my understanding of what you and efemenaxy explained, the albinism gene is like the sickle cell gene. Being 'autosomal recessive' it requires both partners to give the child the disease. Interesting.

I've learnt something new.

I changed my mind, maybe you should let the man know about this, at least he'll know its not entirely the woman's fault.

Having said so, I still feel the man is within his rights to ask if the women had albinoes in their family or not. Everybody is entitled to what they like and what they do not like and it feels like betrayal if the man asked her and she knowingly withheld the information from him. Just as some people do not want sicklers as children although they can be well managed, others do not want albinoes and its attendant peculiarities.
I believe they are prone to eye defects and skin cancers, I'll Google it up.
The angle I'm coming from here is that the woman may have kept the information from the man, hence his drastic and bizzaire action. Else I have never heard of a mam disowning his own kids just because they are albinos.

Zboyd:Albinism doesn't carry the same type of stigma over here that it does in Nigeria.

However, albino kids are sometimes teased in school and, as they get older are a bit shunned in the dating area.

Please oh, albinism doesn't carry any special stigma here in Nigeria. Its the same teasing in school and shunning in the dating area that they experience over there that they experience here. If anything they are treated with kindness(pity?)here, and because of that many of them like to prove themselves. Thank you.

5minsmadness:
Please oh, albinism doesn't carry any special stigma here in Nigeria. Its the same teasing in school and shunning in the dating area that they experience over there that they experience here. If anything they are treated with kindness(pity?)here, and because of that many of them like to prove themselves. Thank you.

Re: The Challenges of Albinism in Nigeria and Beyond

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Albinism in Africa

"The poverty and lack of education suffered by albinos does not stem from any mental or physical disability, but mostly as a result of discrimination, social exclusion and stigma, and in some cases the human rights abuse they suffer as a result of their skin colour."

Read more: http://albinofoundation.org/albinism/albinism-in-africa/
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"The increasing cases of missing albinos among the over six million of them in Nigeria have posed fresh threats to albinism and challenges to the government. The albinos, who suffer health and social challenges, have more to contend with this time, the threat posed by witch doctors; Nigerian spiritualists now crave for albino parts for love or money rituals."

Read more: http://en.starafrica.com/news/the-challenges-of-albinism-in-nigeria.html
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

MYTHS, DISCRIMINATION, AND THE CALL FOR SPECIAL RIGHTS FOR PERSONS WITH ALBINISM IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA.

"Many women have been divorced by their husbands and shunned by families after giving birth to
children with albinism. They have been accused of sleeping with men of other races; of being cursed
and unclean; and of being witches. Children with albinism have also been hidden from the public,
forbidden from socialising with others and treated as outcasts."

Read more: http://www.amanikenya.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Rights-for-People-with-Albinism-in-Africa.pdf
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Fueled by Superstition, People Are Violently Attacking Albinos in Tanzania

"In many parts of Africa, albinism occurs at higher rates than in much of the world. In Tanzania, one in 1,400 people have the disorder — roughly 35,000 people nationwide. Globally, the rate is generally one in 20,000. With limbs regularly selling for hundreds of dollars and entire bodies reportedly costing up to $75,000 in a country where the median annual income is less than $600, there is a widespread assumption in Tanzania and elsewhere in Africa that members of the business and political elite are behind the demand. A rise in attacks has been documented in several countries ahead of elections, when candidates have reportedly employed witch doctors to increase their likelihood of victory."

Read more: https://news.vice.com/article/fueled-by-superstition-people-are-violently-attacking-albinos-in-tanzania
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Plights Of Albinos In Nigeria

"Investigation by LEADERSHIP Weekend reveals that Nigerians living with albinism suffer discrimination from their families, school mates and peers. Some families even commit infanticide on babies born with albinism. There is also a deliberate failure to educate children living with albinism, while chances of persons with albinism gaining employment are limited, and therefore their education is often considered by most parents and guardians as a waste of resources."

Read more: http://leadership.ng/features/371265/plights-albinos-nigeria
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Albino Foundation Condemns Killing Of Albinos In Nigeria

"Speaking in Abuja ahead of the national albinism day, Mr Epelle says Nigerians living with albinism suffer discrimination from their families, schoolmates and peers in addition to a deliberate failure to educate children living with albinism.

Read more: http://www.channelstv.com/2013/05/02/albino-foundation-condemns-killing-of-albinos-in-nigeria/
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
‘Albinos in Nigeria suffer discrimination’

“Some families abandon newly born children with albinism,” he said. “Due to this, an albino has a slim chance to make it in life with most parents reluctant to invest in the education of albino children.”

Read more: http://www.dailytimes.com.ng/article/%e2%80%98albinos-nigeria-suffer-discrimination%e2%80%99
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Human ALBINOS in Africa Killed for Body Parts

"Albinism is a curse in certain parts of Africa. Albinism is a disaster in certain parts of Africa today due to illiteracy, wickedness and extreme superstitious beliefs. African Albinos are on the run and they are being hunted like wild Animals by some mad men who believe the body parts of albinos contain supernatural powers. Why is this so? you will not hear this in the cities and big towns but this is happening right now in some of our villages and small towns.. However, as most of us know, albinism isn't and shouldn't be a curse because Albinos are complete human beings just like you and I. Albinism is just the absence of the genetic factor responsible for skin color. Albinos are complete Human Beings just like any other Human being but some illiterate Africans are too blind to see and some Africans are too superstitious and sometimes too dumb to reason."

Read more: http://www.africaw.com/forum/f17/human-albinos-in-africa-killed-for-body-parts-t2128/


Note: Fascinating subject!

@zboyd.
Yeah I read the whole thing.

Well, I haven't seen or heard anybody divorcing their wives or denying the albino child education or killing them at birth. And like I said I have three of them as friends, all graduates, all married (2ladies and one guy). And they don't go about skulking that people are going to throw rotten apples at them in the street and shout 'outcast'. In fact I don't think anybody is regarded as outcast again, maybe the 'OSU's' but I doubt it .


As for rituals, yeah, that happens unfortunately. Same for hunchbacks, cripples, and any other being seen as abnormal.


All the same, interesting read.

The U.N. Human Rights Office reports five new attacks against people with albinism occurred over an 11-day period in Tanzania this month. This, it says, brings the number of attacks since 2000 to 151, including 74 murders.
Source: http://africanscomplex.com/2014/08/tanzania-ritual-killings-people-albinism-increase/