Our Amazing Jayne Waithera, Positive Exposure Kenya
June 13, 2018
This video is part of #CelebratingWomenWithAlbinism, a campaign by the Disability Rights Unit at the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria. The campaign aims to celebrate the achievements and to highlight the stories and experiences of women with albinism.The campaign was launched in 2018 on International Albinism Awareness Day on 13 June. Celebrating Jayne Waithera (Kenya) Co-founder and Programme Director of Positive Exposure Kenya and Climb for Albinism Activist I was born in Kenya into a “normal” African family, as a person with albinism I experienced more than my fair share of challenges. I knew I was different because of the way the society treated me; even from the stares. I knew I was different in a bad way; it’s not that kind of difference that is to be celebrated. My mother abandoned me, leaving me with my grandmother because of the stigma attached to my condition. In school fellow students would cut me with blades to see if I bled. I struggled with a lot of things especially when it came to reading and writing. I was punished every other day because of my visual impairment which meant that I struggled to see my assignments and class work. When I was 12/13 I She was also taught to move closer to the board whenever she had difficulties reading. I was also taught to the simple technique of moving closer to the board whenever I had difficulties reading. My childhood was filled with discrimination and stigma and I remember my childhood experience more than any other experience I had to go through as a grown up. In the midst of all this cruelty; my grandmother was my pillar of strength. Her unwavering support and love cannot be ignored. Today, I run two initiatives on albinism. The first is Positive Exposure which focuses on education and advocacy through photography and art to change the narrative on persons with albinism. My second initiative is the Climb for Albinism.