A group in Inverness Co. is raising money for schools for albino children in Africa.
Inverness Co. Cares spokesperson John Gillis says their fundraising efforts go toward the St. Mary and St. Odilia schools, for blind, visually impaired, and albino children, in Zambia.
Gillis tells The Hawk albinos face discrimination and violence.
“Medicine people, medicine men and medicine women, who see parts of the albino as useful,” he says. “That they contain magical powers.”
Gillis says because of stigma, poor families often don’t educate their albino children, this compounded by the fact many albino children are blind or visually impaired.
He says it can be much worse than that.
“You have albino children kidnapped, and sometimes an arm taken off, a leg, various body parts taken off because they fetch a fair amount of money in the marketplace.”
Gillis says they have a fundraising goal of $30,000, they have raised a little over $20,000 so far, and are still accepting donations.
He says all the money goes to children’s educational needs, medical needs, and general support for the schools.
