Perspective: My (Albino) Black is Beautiful
I am Jennifer Renée, an artist, musician, actress, influencer and entrepreneur, from Indianapolis, IN, currently living in New York City.
I am African-American, the fourth child of six children and the only child born with Albinism in my immediate family.
Albinism is a genetic disorder which causes a person to be born with little or no pigment in their skin, hair and eyes.
I had some confusion at a young age when kids began to question me about my skin color compared to the skin of my siblings and parents. I didn’t understand what Albinism was and why I was born with it. While I knew that I was black, there were times that I was told I didn’t belong by other black people or just being bullied or questioned about my skin and hair color. That was very upsetting.
I grew up being involved in performing arts, visual arts, music and sports. When I was in middle school, I wanted to fit in so badly because the kids at school would say I needed a tan. So I would wear dark makeup and try all of these sunless tanners that turned my skin orange. Then the kids at school made fun of my orange skin. I felt so defeated.
Growing up in Indianapolis, I felt very different. Although I had a lot of friends, strangers were unkind. I was very self-conscious about going out in public. Because I had never been anywhere else, I thought that people would always look at me the same way and treat me the same. It wasn’t until I left Indianapolis that I found that people can be more accepting in different places.
I don’t think I really learned to accept my skin until I was in college. But I think what helped me the most was to meet women with Albinism and feeling inspired by their stories.
Seeing someone who looked like me and had similar experiences achieving their goals helped me to see that there is nothing wrong with me the way I am.
The first place where I connected with other people with Albinism was through National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation. It the largest organization for Albinism in North America. But we also found each other on social media sites like BlackPlanet and MySpace back in the day. It was really cool for me at the time I was a teenager and had never met anyone with Albinism in person.
I got started as a makeup artist in 2004. My mother gifted me makeup books by Kevyn Aucoin. I was always a visual artist so it made sense for me to take my art into makeup. I started off learning makeup as a beauty representative for AVON. Then I enrolled in my first professional makeup artist workshop taught by one of my favorite makeup educators, Candace Corey. I then had opportunities to assist her and other established makeup artists in different gigs before I began working on my own.
I created a private group for women with Albinism called Albinism Beauty Chat. I began working with major makeup brands as an event brand ambassador and a social media influencer.
IVOREE BEAUTY is named after J. Renee’s daughter
Ivoree Beauty was an idea that was discussed in Albinism Beauty Chat over the years. We mainly discuss which beauty products will work best for our complexion and where to find them. I thought it would be a great idea to come up with a collection of colors that work well for women with Albinism. But the first thing I wanted to bring to the brand were lashes because they were so difficult to find.
I actually walked into this completely unprepared for the amount of attention it has received. I was thinking this would reach a much smaller audience, but it went viral. I took a selfie- like I normally do- and when I posted it, I thought it may get a few likes from the women in the albinism community. But within a few hours, it was being shared thousands of times and wasn’t stopping! The next day, I was in The Shade Room and I really couldn’t believe it. The lashes sold out in 24 hours. It was crazy. I didn’t expect that at all.
I hope others will be encouraged to follow their dreams. You might think you have a small idea and not realize how big of an impact it is for others.
I really didn’t expect people to be so excited about this. If you put it out there, it can be a big thing for people.
My daughter Amaya Ivoree is 10 years old. She does not have Albinism. I taught her to love her hair - we had a lot of fun doing hair together. I taught her to love her skin color. It is different from my skin color so she had questions when she was small, just like I did when I was a child questioning my own mother who has brown skin.
My advice to anyone who has albinism and doesn't know or have other women in her life who do is try to connect with women in the Albinism community. I found them to be a different kind of support that I needed because no one else understood things that only we experience living with Albinism.
To anyone who feels or looks different, embrace what makes you unique.
I wish that I had that mindset early on in life. But now, it has helped me to do many things and inspire others instead of hiding and feeling ashamed like I used to feel.
For myself, I have other personal goals like getting back into music and possibly sharing my own twist on fashion. I am a children’s book illustrator and I would like to do more art related projects. I plan to expand Ivoree Beauty with makeup and other collections, possibly doing collaborations with other creative women especially within the Albinism community. As my favorite quote says,
“If they don’t give you at seat at the table, bring a folding chair.” - Shirley Chisholm