KONY 2012: Spreading the Word to Stop the LRA

Before viewing the Kony 2012 campaign video by the Invisible Children organization, my last few Facebook statuses discussed how much I hated airplanes, my excitement for spring break, and another typical status associating #YOLO with something I’ve eaten.  I then, however, took 30 minutes of my time to watch the newest, most shared link on the Internet: the Kony 2012 short film.

As an aspiring Communication major, everything media-related gets me going.  I am a firm believer in the power of speech, a lover of public speaking, and a serious sucker for anything motivational.  Kony 2012 seemed right up my alley, but it turned out to be something much more than a new campaign for a non-profit organization.

In the video, Jason Russell, the leader of Invisible Children, briefly describes the crimes against humanity that have been occurring in places like Uganda and now throughout other parts of Africa for the last 26 years.  The LRA, the Lord’s Resistance Army, has been found responsible for the rape, murder, and abduction of tens of thousands of African children and their families, under the leadership of a man named Joseph Kony.

Kony 2012 is more than a strictly educational film.  In the video, we are introduced to Jason’s friend Jacob, an African man who was abducted as a child and whose brother was murdered by the LRA in front of him.  We are also introduced to Gavin, Jason’s young son, who learns more about what his dad does for a living for the first time in front of the camera.  The film describes a plan of action, a viral movement of America’s youth to bring Joseph Kony to justice.

It is no surprise that this video went viral in just one day.  The short film has intense emotional appeal and it would surprise me if someone was not somehow affected by a viewing.  But with the buzz that it created on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter came a whole new batch of controversy challenging the motives, finances, and veracity of the claims of the Invisible Children organization.

Suddenly, blogs, like this one blew up everywhere, saying that Invisible Children is allied closely with the Ugandan government, who have also committed crimes against humanity similar to those of the LRA.  Many critics have said that the Kony 2012 campaign is violent, demanding the murder of Joseph Kony in a way similar to the capture of Osama bin Laden.  

Their finances have also been challenged, stating that the new Kony campaign would bring in immense revenue used for the wrong purposes, and that the problem in Uganda has dissipated and therefore Invisible Children is advertising a crisis that is no longer.  One site even criticized Jason Russell for using his own son in most of the film, stating that it made it seem that he was “dumbing down” his explanation of the conflict to the likes of a toddler, assuming that the real audience of the film is similarly uneducated.  

I usually am not the one to “stir the pot,” but come on.  While many of these claims were made on factual data, I highly doubt that a well known non-profit in America would liken its audience to the intellectual capacity of a toddler.  Rather, I saw the interactions with Gavin as showing that this situation is simple.  Joseph Kony?  He is the bad guy of all bad guys, and we are putting ourselves on his level if we don’t do something to stop him.  Still, these criticisms made me seriously doubt the immediate support of this campaign by seemingly all of my friends on Facebook.  Furthermore, I saw the use of Gavin as a way further enhance solidarity.  No child deserves the crimes Kony has inflicted upon the children in Uganda.  No child, anywhere in the world.  Not Jacob, not Gavin, not your own little sister.

I found criticisms of Invisible Children interesting and definitely enlightening, but it took more research for me to make a decision for myself.  This blogpost says that by supporting Invisible Children, you are directly supporting the Ugandan army.  While Invisible Children has stated that they have required the help of regional governments in Uganda to make leaps in their campaign, I disagree with the blogpost.  By supporting Invisible Children, you are supporting an important crusade for human rights.

Then, just as I was beginning to doubt the validity of the Kony 2012 campaign and Invisible Children’s plan for Africa, the organization released its response to its many new criticisms.  

Take the time to read this, and you will be in awe at the care and time the organization took in responding to every single challenge thrown its way in the past week.

I have spent a lot of time researching the Ugandan conflict and the issues with the LRA that have spread to other places in Africa.  I have read multiple blogposts both supporting and challenging Invisible Children, and I have come to one conclusion.  Invisible Children has begun an amazing movement with social media. They have started a real conversation with American youth.  Suddenly, the Facebook statuses I am seeing have real substance, talking about human rights, justice, Joseph Kony, and the benefits as well as the pitfalls of leading a nonprofit in the United States.

You do not have to agree with the Kony 2012 campaign or even financially support the efforts of Invisible Children to understand that what is happening in Africa is an enormous injustice.  Martin Luther King Jr. once wrote, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”  It is undoubtedly a feat that the statuses I see these days are related to global issues, rather than the usual fluff that we all love but could really do without.

To be honest, I haven’t finally decided whether or not I am in full support of Invisible Children’s plans for Uganda.  I do support, however, the Kony 2012 idea that we all need to come together to save the lives of our world’s children.  This single, thirty-minute video has mobilized an enormous and impassioned force of America’s youth, and I am excited to see where it takes us.
 
If you are in support of the Kony 2012 campaign and would like to get more involved you can sign the Invisible Children pledge here.  You can also join the Boston and Boston College Cover the Night events on Facebook.