Within the past few days an internet sensation has struck the world in the form of Invisible Children’s Joseph Kony 2012 appeal. Never before has Facebook been utilised in such a manner that an idea has spread across it, around the entire world, in such a short amount of time. So what is the KONY 2012 movement? Invisible Children, a charity involved in helping the kidnapped child soldiers of Uganda, created a video with the intent of mass marketing it to such an extent that the whole world would be made aware of the terrible crimes committed by the leader of the LRA, Joseph Kony. The effect so far has been staggering. Groups in almost every country worldwide have been formed to fulfill the aim set forth by the video: make Joseph Kony famous! This might seem a somewhat strange method of approach, but it has proved to be one of pure genius. It is safe to say that Joseph Kony is nowhere near as famous as some of the other top international criminals but by making him famous, Invisible Children hope that the world will demand the capture and arrest of a man responsible for numerous unthinkable atrocities. Their aim is to create such vast support that governments will no longer be able to ignore the situation and will be forced to act. America has already sent out a task force to help the Ugandan army capture Kony, but so far they have been limited in their success and the danger of the support and funding for the operation to disappear is becoming serious. As a result, the people behind the charity decided to make this video in order to create enough awareness that the people would demand action. After one week, the video has been viewed 14.7 million times, a triumph to rival the greatest YouTube sensations.

Joseph Kony 2012 Criticism

Unfortunately, with all great movements, there comes a large amount of criticisms, and KONY 2012 is no exception. Blogs such as this have sprung up all over the internet cautioning against everything that Invisible Children are trying to do. The charities money spending has come under fire with statistics suggesting that only 31% of money donated is actually going towards helping children and the fact that their finances have not been made public has also been a cause for great concern. The critics are saying that the charity is encouraging the use of violence and force to capture a man who is no longer even active, and their efforts will only result in more
bloodshed. Other more cynical critics have sarcastically commented on how the world suddenly cares about Ugandan children because of a well marketed video instead of an actual desire for justice. The list of things that people have come up with against KONY 2012 is almost endless but I cannot help feel that they are all entirely missing the point. Whether or not we donate money to the charity, or whether or not we even capture Joseph Kony, this single video has already achieved several great things: The world is now aware of a man so evil that he was placed at the very top of the international criminals list. If, as they say, knowledge truly is power, then power now belongs to us and to every average Joe throughout the world. We can all make a difference just by supporting this video, by sharing it on Facebook or Twitter, or even through word of mouth. The fact that this video has 14.7 million views after one week shows exactly how powerful a message like this can be and the ripple effect that it can cause. If our governments are moved to act because we, the people, demand it, then democracy is working to its uttermost capabilities.

The other main criticism that I can’t help but scoff at is from those who say that by going after Joseph Kony we are creating a possibility of more bloodshed. What a pathetic world it would be if we took that view of everything. You may say, “Well, that’s easy for you to say from the comfort of your own home”, but if we allowed people and organisations to do things and never retaliated then Hitler would never have been stopped, Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi, Osama bin Laden and countless other evil men would still be in power. The world cannot stand idle in fear of bringing evil men to justice and I believe, because of KONY 2012, Joseph Kony will be brought to justice. The idea behind this short film is truly immense, its power is limitless and the ramifications, not just for Joseph Kony, but for every evil doer in the world, are unthinkable.

So what can we do? Share the video, create more awareness, sign the petition and join the world on April 20^th 2012 in letting our governments know that this child stealer must and will be arrested. “You see what power is – holding someone else’s fear in your hand and showing it to them!” We have that power, now let’s use it.