Transitions – Three White Girls in Benin

Benin is a sliver of an African country next to its more well-known neighbor, Nigeria. In 2003, after college graduation, our daughter spent a few weeks there visiting her friend Angelina, a Peace Corps volunteer.

When Angelina arrived in Benin, she was immediately drawn to a young neighbor girl with albinism. Albinos have little or no melanin in their skin, a rare, inherited genetic disorder caused by mutations in genes that affect melanin production, resulting in a lack of or significantly reduced color in the skin, hair, and eyes. In many third-world countries, albinos are ostracized and, in rare cases, attacked and dismembered for superstitious rituals. Benin is poor but not cruel. Even in our nation, people with albinism are discriminated against because they look too white, not pal