- Title: Burkina Faso TV star inspiring fellow albinos to excel without fear or shame
- Date: 8th March 2020
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (French) LINE BANTY IVORIAN PRESENTER WITH ALBINISM OF AN ENTERTAINMENT SHOW ON 3TV TELEVISION SAYING: "I was looking at photos of my first fashion shows because I started my career as a model. I have good memories. It allowed me to organise my own fashion show, my own 100 percent albino show, an albino festival, the 'Albibel' (Albi-beautiful')' celebrating, wh
- Embargoed: 22nd March 2020 11:48
- Keywords: Albinism Albino Burkina Faso Line Banty stereotypes women
- Location: OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO / YOPOUGON, IVORY COAST
- City: OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO / YOPOUGON, IVORY COAST
- Country: Burkina Faso
- Topics: Human-Led Feature,Human-Led Stories
- Reuters ID: LVA005C46Y2PZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Line Banty is the energetic presenter of a daily entertainment programme on Burkina Faso's private television station 3TV. Today, this larger than life woman with albinism has become a role model for Africans with the congenital disorder - a lack of pigmentation in the skin, hair and eyes.
She has been in the limelight for a year now since becoming a chat show host at Mag12 a platform to introduce artists, rappers, musicians and media personalities.
She says as an albino woman, she had to overcome at least several hurdles in her career. The first was working in a country where women are seen as the weaker sex. According to West Africa Brief, nearly half of all women in Burkina Faso are married before the age of 18 and 90 percent of the population believe unpaid care work is a woman's job.
In 2015, she organised a '100 percent Albino' street fashion show in the neighbourhood of Yopougon, a suburb of Abidjan, the capital of Ivory Coast, her country of origin.
On her Facebook page, Banty deals with albinism head on, publicly condemning those who send her derogatory, demeaning or threatening messages because of her condition or her gender.
The message on her wall is 'I am albino - I own it'. Banty says she has received a lot of messages from other people with albinism saying they have come out of their shell thanks to her positive public personality.
She says she is open and upfront about albinism on the show as well which regularly raises the issue inviting guests with albinism or just talking about it.
Action on Albinism, a co-ordination platform for mobilizing resources and organizations committed to the implementation of the Regional Action Plan to improve and protect the lives of people with Albinism, say there is a common misbelief in Burkina Faso that the body parts of persons with albinism can bring power and good luck making them vulnerable to attacks.
The organisation said since 2006, over 700 attacks and other violations against persons with albinism have been reported across 28 countries in Africa.
Banty has escaped two attempts to kidnap her because of her condition, and shudders at the memory of a former boyfriend who took clippings of her hair while she slept, for luck.
Banty said the secret to her success was hard work and an unbreakable will to win.
Her energy and ambition are unstoppable. She says she would like to start a foundation for her albino brothers and sisters so one day they can rule the world.
The Albino Women's Association watch a recording of Banty's programmes every weekend because they find it inspiring. President Maimouna Deni says it helps girls with albinism get out of their shell and get rid of their complexes about walking in public.
Long before she rose to fame in Burkina Faso, Line Banty became acutely aware of her albinism when as a young girl she was the only one in her family to get badly sunburned on a beach outing.
Now, as the presenter of a popular daytime entertainment show, in which she dominates the screen with her colourful wax dresses and wide smile, Banty, 27, is using her celebrity to inspire young albinos to fulfil their potential without fear or shame. In her words, to "rule the world."
(Production: Ndiaga Thiam, Yvonne Bell) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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