Albinism Coverage

I was interested to read “Pigment Prejudice” [Winter 2013]. In the early 1990s, while I was on the faculty of the UW–Madison Department of Medical Genetics, my laboratory studied the genetic cause of albinism in Tanzania. Despite advances in medical knowledge, the tragedy of albinos in Tanzania and elsewhere in east Africa provides a stark reminder that the veneer of civilization is thin, and that ignorance and mysticism remain powerful forces in much of the world.

Richard Spritz ’72 Cherry Hills Village, Colorado

Published in the Spring 2014 issue