A young albino woman says she wears make-up everyday after being "abused, bullied and even spat on" because of her appearance. Billie-Jo Randall says she has been physically attacked in public because of her disability and has "rude comments hurled at her" whenever she leaves the house.
Her mental health has suffered as a result, with the 21-year-old saying she often wears fake tan and tones her hair to try hide her condition. Albinism reduces the amount of melanin produced by the body, which can affect colouring and eyesight. Those with the condition tend to have very light skin and hair as well as pink, red or violet eyes.
In an interview with Daily Star, Billie-Jo, from Yorkshire, said: “I started wearing fake tan around two years ago due to rude comments hurled at me about my fair, lily-white skin, which started to bother me a lot. I then went on to toning my hair around a year ago due to the bullying I was getting in public places for having naturally white hair.
"This affected my mental health, so I started toning my hair lilac. I currently wear makeup every day to hide the fact I’m albino due to the abusive behaviour I got from people in public places. I'm human, so the fact that I’m an albino should not be treated any differently.
"Due to my albinism, I have faced so much discrimination, such as being spat on in the face in a public environment during college. I have also had physical attacks in public due to my disability and how I look.”
Billie-Jo currently doesn’t work because of her disability and the effects it has on her day-to-day life. Her condition means she has visual impairments, which result in her struggling with everyday tasks such as walking and seeing things clearly.
People with albinism have skin that is very sensitive to light and sun exposure, which means sunburn is one of the most serious complications associated with the condition, because it can increase the risk of developing skin cancer and strokes. Billie-Jo also has nystagmus, which is a rhythmical, repetitive and involuntary movement of the eyes that results in her eyes getting tired and sore easily.
Despite all of this, there are also a variety of things that Billie-Jo loves about her condition. She said: "The best part of being albino, which I love the most, has to be my rare eye colour and the amazing compliments I get from strangers. It makes me feel proud to be who I am as a person and to know I’m not the only albino in my family - I have an albino sister who was born in 1999, then I came along in 2001. None of our parents or the rest of the family is albino, which makes me dazzled.”
Billie-Jo uploads videos to TikTok, where she educates people on what being albino entails. However, because she tans her skin, wears makeup and colours her hair, some people don’t believe she actually has the condition.
“They say I use contact lenses and bleach my hair. I reply back and tell them to think what they want because I am a true albino and would never fake a medical condition,” she said. “I wish people actually got educated on what albinism is as I constantly have to explain it to people. It gets annoying at times.
“People should understand the advantages and disadvantages of being an albino as well as understanding that they have rare eye colours and hair colour due to the lack of pigmentation in the eyes, hair and skin and that we are all the same no matter the eye, skin and hair colour.”
Billie-Jo hopes sharing her story will help others with albinism – and she wants to connect with more of them in the future. She added: “My dream would be to meet more albino people across the country. I would love to meet more people that have the same condition as me.”
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