I'm going to get right in and personal here.
I'm sure by now most of you have heard about KONY 2012, if not, here's the video.
Now, lots of conspiracies have arisen in the last 48 hours that the video was brought live and educated a lot of people about what is happening Uganda. I've personally known about the LRA, children soldiers, their forced mutilation and killing for years now. This doesn't just happen in Uganda, it happens in the Congo, Sierra Leona, and I'm more than positive that the LRA is not the only rebel group.
Now with this being said, I'm not belittling the director and Invisible Children's goal, but I'm not supporting this because of catching a dictator. It's naive to think that capturing one will stop it all, it doesn't work that way. Joseph Kony has been corrupting the children he abducts for 26 years, but ruining African childrens' lives has been happening decades before that. Not only that, but Kony must have allies, accomplices who I am sure will try to continue on his work. Don't get me wrong, I'm hopeful this will change at least something in Africa, and I'm more than hopeful it'll carry on an effect other areas and third world countries. Personally I'm glad someone is taking a step, the KONY project finally educated the people who needed to be educated on what's happening in our world. Of course there will be ignorance, everyone has a different opinion. But I sincerely sincerely hope that this doesn't just "disappear" in a week. I'm not supporting this for KONY, I'm supporting for giving his LRA children and the children he would've abducted a chance, with the hope that this will cause a ripple effect and bring light to other injustices in our world.
Raising awareness is vital, how can people know what's going on without the proper information? And I personally believe that the way this campaign is being marketed is both great but questionable, a double-ended sword. What makes it questionable for me, is the plea for donations for a different organization. I haven't researched into it thus far, but just from the video itself, I think there should have been more information according to the donation process, where the money goes, what percent of it is received (like, hello. not 100% won't be, the movie has quite some special effects.) and the charities relationship (TRI) with Invisible Children. But I think it's very successful for these individuals and organization to raise awareness and market in such a large industry in the world: social networking. The simplicity of just sharing the video to make Joseph Kony famous and recognized globally to ensure his arrest is genius, but I hope that my fellow peers and friends won't just stop at that. I'm not saying to fly all the way to Africa tomorrow and go catch Kony with your bare hands, (that's extremist even for me) but advocate for this. Not only for the KONY project, but also for organizations such as World Vision and UNICEF. These unfortunate children, not only in Uganda but Sierrra Leona, South Africa, Southern America, Timor, everywhere in the world, need a voice and through social networking we can be their voice. Don't just stop at KONY, he's one man of the thousands and millions out there taking the childhood and innocence of children globally.
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