Fueled by Superstition, People Are Violently Attacking Albinos in Tanzania

By Samuel Oakford originally posted at Vice.com

 

 

August 27, 2014 | 6:15 pm

In the past month, a spate of violent attacks in Tanzania targeting people with albinism for their body parts has highlighted a morbid practice linked to witchcraft.

People with albinism, also known as albinos, are born with a deficiency of melanin pigmentation. Those with a complete lack of pigmentation have extremely pale skin and hair, and their eyes are typically a light shade of blue. The condition generally results from recessive genes carried by parents. Albinism in Africa brings with it an increased chance of developing fatal skin cancer, and the lack of pigment to protect eyes against the bright sun can cause sight problems.

Africans with the condition can suffer alienating social stigma in communities where their neighbors and relatives believe them to be ghosts, cursed, or…

Mad?  Oh yes I am and beyond any words that I can express here.  Discouraged?  Totally of people’s lack of moral judgement, inner-compass of values and code of conduct.  Disappointed?  Yes – I’m totally disappointed, that there are people out there who think they can take what is not theirs and what?  Make money?  Or draw traffic to their website?   Why all in the name of getting known?  No it’s more than that . . .

I’m calling you out right here and now:

http://www.imgarcade.com

http://www.garmin.com.co

Last week completely by chance I discovered that these two sites/companies confiscated images of several of my paintings and have placed their identity as the authors of my work.  Are you serious?!  Doing a search on Google, Dogpile, Yahoo, etc. of “oil pastel seascapes” I found several of my paintings with these two companies as the owner – OH NO YOU DON’T! 

I found…

“Old Boat”
Painting by Tracy Effinger Upton
From tracyeffingerart.blogspot.com

the rowboat
bumps gently
in moorage
asleep in her
dreams of
summertime
voyages cross
silver ponds
along banks of
svelte streams
iron oarlocks
intoning the
stout chants
of hardwood
in swivel and
swim through
deep pools of
cool fisheries
halting above
rower’s secret
most spot for
new mornings
of lazy delight
where the low
rising sun skims
and glances off
sparkling surfaces

all of a unit
the wood and
the rower
the water and
all of their
summertimes
sprung from
the dreamstuff
of one grieving
widow boat
left to her
paint crumbled
reverie missing
her untethered
days pulled with
pride and an
effortless glide
through the life
of the two arms
and hands that so
lovingly built her

Let’s talk about a monster that’s always lurking in the shadows shall we?
It’s a beast called Depression.
This monster makes many victims every year, has the ability to show up out of nowhere and is a tough one to battle.

First of all, let’s see what the specialists can tell us about this monster:

“Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can affect a person’s thoughts, behavior, feelings and sense of well-being. Depressed people feel sad, anxious, empty, hopeless, worried, helpless, worthless, guilty, irritable, hurt, or restless. They may lose interest in activities that once were pleasurable, experience loss of appetite or overeating, have problems concentrating, remembering details, or making decisions, and may contemplate, attempt, or commit suicide. Insomnia, excessive sleeping, fatigue, loss of energy, or aches, pains, or digestive problems that are resistant to treatment may also be present.

Depressed mood is not always a psychiatric disorder. It may also be a normal reaction…