Albinism is a hereditary disease which prevents the body from making the correct amounts of the pigment
melanin.
Due to the lack of melanin being produced a person with the condition has no pigment to their hair, skin and eyes and has a very pale, ghostly appearance.
An albino's pale white skin which lacks melanin is unprotected from the sun's harmful ultra-violet rays, and albinos can suffer terribly from sunburn if they have too much exposure to the sun. Albinism isn't terminal itself, but the risks from skin cancer are alarmingly high.
The eyes of an albino animal are often red, this is due to blood vessels in the eye not being covered by pigment. Because human eyes are much bigger in relation to animal eyes, this effect is rarely present. There will still be a lack of pigment though, and the eyes are usually only coloured enough to have a very pale blue and in extreme cases even some human albinos have the characteristic red, or sometimes purple eyes.
The condition effects the eyes more than just their colour, all albinos will have a certain amount of sight impairment which cannot be corrected with lenses.
Albinos are often only partially sighted, or blind. But others have sight well enough to drive and read easily.
A negative stereotype has been given to people with albinism, throughout history and in contemporary popular culture. As recently as
The Da Vinci Code albinos have been depicted as malevolent villains with evil intentions.
The Twins from
Matrix Reloaded were criticised for their portrayal of albinism.
Gary Busey's psychopathic character in
Lethal Weapon is referred to as "the albino".
Mel Smith was cast as "The Albino" in
The Princess Bride, a nasty torturer and dungeon master.
Tombstone from the Spiderman comics is an African American albino and a merciless hitman.
The computer game
Hitman: Blood Money features two albino assassins. Griffin from H.G. Wells'
The Invisible Man, a thief and a bounder, was only able to become invisible due to his albinism.
Even the dishonourable Klingon from
Star Trek is depicted as being albino!
If not being shown as downright evil psychopaths and murderers, albinos are still only portrayed as freaks and outcasts.
In the 1995 film
Powder, the lead character Jeremy is an outcast with dangerous potentially lethal powers. Even the name is felt derogatory. Casper in
Me, Myself and Irene sees the Farrelly Brothers sending up albinism in their own unmistakable way. This film received more criticism for it's mocking of the mentally ill than it did of it's casual discrimination towards albinos.
Even the arch-oddball himself Arthur "Boo" Radley, from
To Kill A Mockingbird was described as albino, with his pale skin. Boo Radley is a now a catch-all term for recluses and weirdos.
Can the tide of popular opinion be turned? Well a new albino has been thrown into the spotlight,
Darnell Swallow is the albinistic young man that entered the
Big Brother house this week. He's got a history of gang related crime that saw him deported from the United States, but can he win the hearts of the Great British public and convince the country that albinos aren't all reclusive, murdering lunatics?
For more information on what albinism is really about, and how it effects young people in the world today I recommend this website made by
Bianca Knowlton. She seems to be the best qualified on the matter.
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