It takes only a few minutes online to get an earful or eyeful of news on the recent “Kony 2012” and “Invisible Children” controversy. Things spread like wildfire these days, especially when people feel like they’re accomplishing something by spreading it.
As for those who aren’t aware of what I’m talking about, let me quickly summarize the ongoing ordeal: at the beginning of the month, a 30-minute long (and quite moving) video appeared on YouTube imploring people to stop Ugandan war criminal Joseph Kony and spread international awareness of his crimes, mainly focusing on his kidnapping and mistreatment of children, most of whom he makes child soldiers.
The video is narrated by Jason Russell, who tells the story of his friend Jacob, a Ugandan boy who has come face to face with the horrors in Uganda which Russell wants so badly to end. It really pulls your heartstrings as you watch Jacob cry while he recounts his brother’s death and Russell uses his son as a powerful symbol for the future generations.
Some people haven’t been so easily pulled in by such moving images, and fear that these tactics may have a more sinister purpose. It seems that Ugandan residents have complained about Invisible Children, the charity behind the KONY 2012 “campaign,” as well as other large advocates of ending “the longest-running armed conflict in Africa.”
Some people believe that the organization and its advocates may be misusing the money they receive from donations as well as manipulating facts about themselves and the Ugandan situation in order to further their interests.
Now, whether these allegations are right or wrong, what bothers me most is the “selective activism” the campaign has picked up, if it can even be called activism at all. Not very long after the video’s release, it ignited Facebook, Reddit, the blogosphere and all other forms of online media.
I’m sure there is a group of people who are long-time activists and the recent spreading of KONY 2012 is just an extension of their past work, and I’m sure most people have good intentions. There’s just something irksome about seeing a majority of people who, in reality, never gave a thought to the Ugandan plight before the release of the 30-minute propaganda piece, and probably never will again after the hustle and bustle dies down.
Should you “support the cause” just to congratulate yourself after posting a link to Facebook?
To make matters worse, most of these people pat themselves on the back without even first looking into the “cause” they were “supporting.” This sort of impulse and irrational activism is very dangerous and only becomes easier to do in the technology age, when it only takes a few clicks to spread the word.
And this isn’t to say that the other side of the coin isn’t guilty of just the same thing. Word spread quickly about Invisible Children’s skeletons in the closet and, just as fast as KONY 2012 became the flavor of the week, it became quite the anathema. People judged the campaign and its originator without the slightest clue about the situation.
Now, no one’s advocating to stop aid to war-torn Africa or to put an end to charities. It’s just that such situations are often complicated, especially when you choose an intermediary between yourself and those you want to help. These decisions require thought and investigation, or you may just be advocating causes that run against your own interests.