I understand why there’s a desire to do something about Kony and the child soldiers in Uganda. I’m proud of the people who’ve learned about it and have decided to act - it’s people who raise awareness and speak out that make the most difference. I commend you. Learning, educating, and working with different non-profits and social justice forums sheds light on little-known issues, and finds a way to aid people in creating change. It’s places like Tumblr and Facebook that give the momentum that these movements need to finally find the voice they were searching for.
But what about all the other movements that need to be talked about? What about the genocide in Sudan? What about the sex tourism industry in southeast Asia? What about the honor killings in the Middle East? What about the quest for women’s rights in third world countries? What about the skyrocketing homeless population in our own country, America? Do we really need a video about a certain issue to create a cause? Shouldn’t we take the initiative to find out about these ourselves? Shouldn’t we do something on our own agenda, not because we saw a video on it?
Can’t we, as a group, find a way to bring - not just one issue - but all issues to the front of our minds? Why can’t we have the passion to help other movements the way the “Kony2012” has?
I found myself angry that this movement gained so much recognition in such a short amount of time; especially when there are so many other causes that need the same amount of recognition. After so many years of protesting, rallying, showing movies and videos, attending conferences, and working with groups like IC, I found that people’s patterns of interest always died out. It was frustrating when the people that used to care, stopped. It was like a repetitive cycle: someone cares enough to hold a sign for a few hours, but not enough to hold the same sign the next year. They were either too busy, or didn’t have the interest, or just plain ol’ didn’t care anymore.
For someone who’s made her entire life about social-justice movements, I was appalled that Invisible Children had only just received the notoriety that it’s gotten. “IC’s been around for years, and now they’re interested?” I likened it to the “bandwagon effect” that happened with the San Francisco Giants won the World Series - all of a sudden everyone was rooting for the team that people used to bet against in pre-season. How is that fair? Shouldn’t you learn, grow, and stay with one cause for longer than a few days? Again, it’s just been my experience that’s taught me about this cycle.
I feel like the “Kony2012” movement will gain notoriety, and (possibly) make the change. But change also starts with writing letters to your congressmen, attending info sessions, calling in to the hotlines. Change starts with the desire to follow a movement and see it through to the very end. That’s where I challenged the motive - all too often I’ve seen people buy the shirts because they “look cool”, but then they can never explain what the message is behind it.
I will be very interested to see how this all plays out in a few months… After years of working with savedarfur.org, we’ve yet to see President Omar al-Bashir brought to justice by the Hague. Multiple arrest warrants have been put out and numerous memos have been published by the ICC (International Criminal Court) about his atrocities. Yet nothing has been done. It is disheartening and frustrating.
The most effective way to prevent social injustice is to prevent it from happening in the first place. Leaders in every country must utilize any diplomatic asset they’ve got at their disposal and demonstrate the political courage to act - that means being ready and willing to call on our elected officials (congressmen, senators, presidents, heads of state) to do the right thing. Our will to change Kony and the atrocities in Uganda is not enough; make the change and force your government to create federal legislation that will ensure that we remain the watch-dog of the world. We, as a whole, have to be proactive about all issues ranging from child soldiers in Uganda to honor killings in the Middle East.
Being a part of a movement is wonderful. But nothing will change if you forget about it in a week. We are all responsible for protecting the citizens of the world, every day, for the rest of our lives, not just when one video goes viral. Take the initiative and get involved. Use Google and research these issues on your own time, watch documentaries instead of reality TV shows, and plan get togethers that focus on this issue.
As a citizen of the world, I find it saddening that we’ve got to wait so long for issues like this to be brought to the forefront of our attention - take the initiative, take action, take back the injustice.
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