Ashley Davis
Opinion Editor
A video recently went viral made by an organization known as Invisible Children, called KONY 2012. In 2006, a documentary film was made by three college students that formed an organization called Invisible Children. The video attempted to shed light on the human rights abuse by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) also known as the ‘rebels’ in Uganda. Children are abducted by the LRA, forced to become soldiers and kill. The documentary depicts the abduction of children who are used as child soldiers by Joseph Kony and the LRA, which he leads.
Now, the Invisible Children Organization has produced a short 30-minute documentary called KONY 2012 that sends a message of urgency. It asks all people to take action against Joseph Kony, by ‘making him famous’.
Joseph Kony is the leader of the LRA and is responsible for the deaths of over 30,000 people. He is also wanted by an international court for crimes against humanity. The documentary informs the public about who Kony is, and what exactly people can do to help in capturing, and arresting him for his crimes. Their website says, “We are advocating for the arrest of Joseph Kony so that he can be tried by the International Criminal Court (ICC) as a precedent for future war criminals. The goal of KONY 2012 is for the world to unite to see Kony arrested and prosecuted for his crimes against humanity.”
People are urged to share the video through social networks, and it has had millions of views in just a short period of time. With all of this publicity, controversy has arisen. Many people are questioning the organization and its motives and practicality but the status of its final success is yet to be determined.
The organization is also hosting a night called ‘Cover the night’ which is set to happen on April 20, 2012, on all surfaces in every city. During Cover the Night from 9 o’clock – 12 o’clock at night, people will fill the streets and cover every public building with posters and stickers of Kony’s face, in order to ‘make him famous’.
On the Invisible Children website www.kony2012.com people can pledge their support, buy kits with posters and stickers, and write letters to famous celebrities and politicians in power, asking them to help raise awareness. This is all in hopes of getting the government to take further action against Kony, capture him and make him serve his time for the crimes he has committed. This is considered the first step towards a big change for Uganda and for the world in its entirety.
To learn more about KONY 2012 visit their website:
www.kony2012.com
They ask for participation by doing these five things:
1. Watch the video titled Kony 2012
2. Pledge your support on their website
3. Write letters to famous celebrities and politicians asking them to help raise awareness
4. Spread the word (through Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr…etc).
5. Participate in your local ‘Cover The Night’
Sources:
www.invisiblechildren.com
www.kony2012.com
