Two weeks ago, had you asked the average high school student who Joseph Kony was, they would probably assume he invented the hot dog. Thanks to a YouTube video, however, anyone with a Facebook account now knows who Kony is.
He's the brutal leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, a militia from Uganda. Kony's method of leadership is more akin to stringing an unending line of atrocities together.
Aside from bringing destruction on the land like Atilla the Hun, Kony has perverted the most valuable resource of any society: children. When it became obvious that Kony was not drawing large enough numbers to continue his bloody raids, he improvised.
Instead of hanging up the towel, he decided to build himself an army of kids. Some children were made into soldiers and others into sex slaves. As a warning, Kony's forces sometimes cut off people's noses, ears, or lips.
The man is unmistakably blight on the face of the earth.
Luckily, a viral video has exploded across social media sites. Titled "KONY 2012," its creators, Invisible Children inc., have a clear goal: get Joseph Kony arrested for human rights violations by sharing the video and "making him famous."
To that end, the video is an incredible success. Over the course of three days the video has generated over 35 million views, and has nearly as many "likes" as the most viewed video on YouTube, "Baby" by Justin Bieber.
Obviously this video has struck a chord with its audience. All over the Internet, sanctimonious slacktivists are making people feel guilty about their bad days and exhausting studying regimen by reminding them "at least they're not abducted by Kony."
As with almost every story, when you read a little more into it things start to get a lot more complex.
Invisible Children inc. has been taking in a great deal of money as donations to the cause. In the video, the filmmakers explain that they support the Ugandan military in its effort to catch Kony.
Problem is, the LRA hasn't been in Uganda for some time. For a video trying to get the word out, that's quite a major word to leave out. Then consider the fact that the Ugandan military isn't exactly a group of cherubs either. It's also been accused of a number of human rights violations.
In fact, the LRA is hardly a force any longer. Some even think that the reason Kony has been so hard to find is because he's actually dead.
Few hiding spots are as effective as a grave.
Then comes the money. Seventy percent of the donations are going to pay for travel expenses, salaries, and filmmaking. So out of every dollar you give to Invisible Children, it only translates to 30 cents for the actual cause.
"Kony 2012" is basically emotion porn, designed perfectly to play you like a violin and get you to share the video. The beauty is that the filmmakers know how to get the word out to as many people as possible, and they did an amazing job of it. Few in history have raised awareness of an important issue this rapidly. In fact, it's probably never happened this quickly.
It's great to get the word out to people about a serious issue, and there is nothing wrong with helping spread the news, but Invisible Children has only a misguided way to solve a horrible problem.
Even if Kony were caught tomorrow, and Invisible Children's vision is realized, the problem would continue.
Better charities abound that you can give your money to; charities that have been doing great work in Africa that are effective, responsible, and transparent like Doctors Without Borders or Africare. Many thanks should be given to Invisible Children for showing Kony's face to the world, but this should also be a lesson for the future.
Just because they have a great video and a good message doesn't mean you should take your chances with where your money goes.
