WINNERS

You Said I Was Ugly... You Lied.

  • Photographer
    Isaak Adoyi, United States
  • Prize
    Silver Winner in Human/Portrait

Growing up, I knew that I was handsome, beautiful in a way. I got bullied by family members and classmates growing up in Togo. They made fun of my features - my lips, my skin and my size (skinny). I left Togo and moved to the United states in 2007 to live with my mother in Cincinnati, Ohio. I was so excited thinking that I would finally be somewhere where I could be seen and appreciated. It got worse. I got picked on more in high school until the point that I was scared to go to class, but thankfully I made 3 friends who admired me. They always told me I'd be a great model one day.