The Dutch-Chinese Xueli Abbing, who was born with albinism, will become ambassador for the UN organization Unesco. She will be involved worldwide in the fight against discrimination and racism.
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I especially want to show my face in many places in the world
In Paris Monday evening was the ceremony in which fashion model Abbing (17) was officially appointed as ‘goodwill’ ambassador by Unesco director Audrey Azoulay. ,,I’m really honored to be able to do this,” said Xueli. ,,We have been quietly preparing for a year, but now the time has come. I just gave my speech here in Paris, in front of a whole room, and I had never spoken in my life. I was nervous!”
In consultation with UNESCO, she will use her ‘talent, experience and reputation’ to promote human rights worldwide. ,,They are going to present me with a program of activities and I can make proposals myself. For example, I’m already working on a podcast, with interviews about albinism. I want to give masterclasses on discrimination. And I especially want to show my face and talk to people in many places in the world.”
Icon with influence
The UN Organization for Culture, Education and Science wants to use the Dutch teenager as an icon with influence. “Xueli fights stereotypes in the fashion world and uses her celebrity to change people’s ideas about albinism,” UNESCO said in a statement. “She wants her own life story to offer hope and inspiration to people who are seen as ‘different’.”
Abbing is originally Chinese but was abandoned by her parents. She suffers from albinism: a genetic abnormality that causes reduced pigmentation. As a result, her skin and hair are exceptionally light and white and her eyes work poorly: she only sees 8 to 10 percent.
Warm welcome
In China, this condition is not or hardly accepted. She ended up in an orphanage. There she was called Xue Li, which is Chinese for ‘beautiful snow’.
When she was 3 years old, she was adopted by Joeke Abbing from Rotterdam. She received a warm welcome and a new home, where respect was central. “My mother taught me not to judge others,” Xueli said at the end of last year the AD.
Xueli has been doing volunteer work in recent years to draw attention to albinism. But she was also discovered as a model.
In 2016, she participated in a fashion show in Hong Kong. She then got a contract with the ‘inclusive’ international modeling agency Zebedee and appeared in the Italian . in 2019. vogue† Fashion house Kurt Geiger asked her to participate in a ‘diversity campaign’.
From foundling to model
‘From foundling to fashion model’, headlined the AD about her already in 2017. She uses her modeling work all the time to raise awareness about discrimination in general and albinism in particular. She told the British BBC a year ago that she wanted to change the world. “Well, you also have to be realistic,” she says now. “You can’t change the world. Just look at the war in Ukraine now. But you can try to make the world a bit more beautiful. That’s hard work. And that’s what I want to do: work hard.”
Not just through the camera or on the catwalk, by the way. ,,Being a model is fun,” says Xueli. ,,But that will stop once you’re past the date. And there is also a life next to and after being a model. I want to be there for people, I want to do something in healthcare, I want to provide information about albinism.”
Her job at UNESCO is unpaid. “I don’t want any money either. The work is really, as the name suggests, ‘goodwill’. The money I earn from modeling I invest in my own studies or give to charities.”
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