Where Is Albino Representation?

People have talked on and on about representation whether it is African-American representation or LGBTQ representation, Hollywood has seen an advancement in the progressive movement with a more diverse workforce. However, I have noticed that there has not been much representation of the albino community. 

I was going to Manhattanville College from 2015 to 2019 and I had an albino friend. I remember many people watching television with albinos being a running gag in the course of a joke.

Little Albino Media and Population

One of the reasons that people with albinism have a difficult time being seen and represented in media is probably because there is a small percentage of them in the world. There are only about 20,000 people with albinism in the U.S. alone.

With that being said, it will seem hard for companies and media to market to a small population of people where they may not make that much money. I understand that this seems extremely unfair for those people with albinism that desire representation in their communities and want to be seen in a positive light by a larger audience. It’s hard to realize but if more people spoke out against this, perhaps there can be some sort of change. 

Awareness Shift

It’s painfully obvious that people go to where there is exposure. Media broadcasts whatever gets the most eyeballs and for whatever reason, albinism does not get the attention that it deserves. 

It’s almost as if people really don’t care about the derision and ridicule that these people face. I remember my friend from college told me that she was bullied a lot for it. I realized that if there was a brighter light on the issue of albinistic bullying, the media and awareness would shift to that corner topic. 

Of course, in today’s hyper-sensitive culture, that may not be far away.