Emotion. It is what has driven millions of social media
consumers to care about evil people and unjust situations. It is the force that
has prodded me to unravel my own knot of oscillating sentiments towards the
campaign.
On one hand, I am awestruck by the momentum of the movement.
The KONY2012 video uses every single propaganda/persuasion technique one of my
classes has ever examined and uses them effectively, seemingly effortlessly, to
address a social justice issue (well, maybe not effortlessly… they have poured thousands of dollars and
dozens of minds into the infomercial’s success). From a media literacy
perspective, this has been an incredible “experiment” (to use I.C’s words), and
I have been genuinely amazed to see how quickly friends on nearly every
continent are posting about Uganda. When I announced to people I was moving
here two years ago, most people knew next to nothing of my new home. An American
customer service rep, just last month, asked me to spell the country’s name…
obviously hearing of it for the first time. Now, Invisible Children has
succeeded at putting Uganda on the international radar. That cannot be
understated.
In the Invisible Children video, Kony is portrayed as a
horrific figure with evil plots and a menacing presence. I wholeheartedly
support aims to capture him. I could not agree more that families should not
have to live in fear. That children should not be forced to be soldiers, to
kill their own families. That people should not be displaced by fighting. That
international attention has been far too limited and hundreds have suffered in
(media) silence. That people geographically far from justice abuses can, and
should, make a difference. That social media and the unity of many voices both
hold substantial power.
And yet… I have been hesitant about a full-fledged support
of Kony2012 and I think I have finally figured out why: on a small level, I am
hesitant about Invisible Children’s approach for many of the same reasons other
critics have voice (props to Invisible Children for directly addressing many of
these concerns at least). But to a greater degree, I am baffled why Kony is
such a huge international villain while other, albeit less dramatic/sensational
tyrants, ravage this region. Kony has not been in Uganda since 2003. His forces
have been diminished to about 200. Does
he still do bad things? Of course. Should he be stopped? YES. But there are
dozens of other issues that, in my mind, need more of an immediate response:
*Malaria and AIDs claim the lives of thousands in this
region each year (lives that could be saved with more affordable health care,
larger-scale education campaigns, access to/education about mosquito nets, etc).
*Millions in this region face an immediate threat of
starvation due to the large-scale famine in East Africa. Similarly, thousands of
Somali refugees flee to Kenya to escape political instability and droughts.
*Here in Uganda, food and gas prices are wildly inflated.
People regularly protest and the government has taken often excessive and
violent measures to quell protesters’ anger at their inability to afford basic
amenities. Many who can afford to eat
still suffer malnutrition because it is too expensive to eat balanced meals.
*Public education is limited and many cannot afford school
fees (and did you know that Uganda has the 2nd highest birth rate in
the world? The average woman here births 6-7 children!). That's a lot of kids to educate!
*Child Sacrifice continues in Uganda and the government has
not yet taken a strong proactive stance against it (note: this is a practice
where virgin children are abducted and slain by witch-doctors, their body parts sold
because they are thought to bring prosperity to the buyers).
*Each year, thousands of women in the region are subjected
to female circumcision (part of numerous tribal traditions; technically
outlawed but still prevalent).
*The government is considering, yet again, a national law
that would subject people who are homosexual in Uganda to the death
penalty. The death penalty!
After several days of reflection and seemingly constant
mental churning of the issue, I revisit an idea I posted on facebook early on:
I desperately hope that this campaign drives people to learn more about this
region. If the Invisible Children film succeeds in doing that AND somehow
aiding the process of catching Kony in the process, than it is a victory for
the Ugandan people.
Please take the time to learn more about this part of the
world. There are many people and causes that need support. Consider splitting
your support between these causes! Below you can find links to some groups I
respect that are doing things to help a few of these causes:
Hunger/famine: Oxfam:
World Food Programme:
Child Sacrfiice: Gideon Foundation (note: this was started
by one of my students)
Disease control: UNICEF
Some interesting facts about Uganda (ex: literacy rates, HIV
prevalence, etc):
A friend runs this group that uses sports to educate/reach Ugandan youth (including those in the region the I.C. movie focuses on):
www.kampalakidsleague.org/
www.kampalakidsleague.org/
