Colorism

sawney-bean:

In mid 2011, Jan Hoek took a trip to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. There, she photographed what the locals affectionately call “sweet crazies” that she saw in the country’s only psychiatric clinic. Recently, Hoek has come under fire for this photoset. She’s been accused of exploiting the patients, and using their images for her own personal gain. Hoek states that her intention was to raise awareness of the mentally ill in other countries. See for yourself here.

Besides her comparing their fashion to that of a hind-end catwalk, I applaud Jan for helping bring this issue to a forefront. Mental Illness in Ethiopia is an extremely huge taboo (just got done completing a presentation on the topic) and a lot needs to be done in order to ease the burden of mental health for both the everyday citizen and the patient.