Photo Credit: Screenshot via TV47 Kenya / #ThisFridayWithBetty featuring Faith Agnetta.
When we discuss the idea of being abled differently, we tend to think of physical access or workplace accommodations. But the other, not less important frontier, is visibility.
In a recent episode of the TV47 show This Friday With Betty, guest Faith Agnetta delivered a resounding message of succeeding despite the presence of conditions such as Eczema. It was an experience that reminded us: as we share our stories, we are occupying the space that used to be occupied by silence or stigma.
Arguably, such situations, as chronic Eczema, are perceived as the struggles that are invisible or private. Society usually dictates that the flare-ups, or the visible effects must remain a secret.
Nevertheless, the sight of a leader such as Faith Agnetta sitting under the studio lights oozes with confidence, does three crucial things: It normalizes the conversation and transfers these conditions out of the doctor’s office and into the living room, and makes it a human reality. It debunks stereotypes, and it demonstrates that a diagnosis is not a determination of one’s capability to lead, speak, or inspire.
To a viewer at home, it is more of a roadmap that they are not alone in their condition, watching Faith gives them hope for what can be achieved. The story of Faith Agnetta is an appeal to us all. You may have a condition or be with someone who has one, but the moral of the story is, do not hide. We are not only helping ourselves speak out, but clearing the way to a better person coming along the line, too.
TV47 Kenya. (2026, March 20). #ThisFridayWithBetty: Thriving Despite Parkinson’s or Eczema [Television broadcast]. https://www.tv47.digital
