Invisible Children INC Poster. Credit: Invisible Children
Why we should criticize and praise the propaganda campaign.
**Awareness is good, but awareness with context is great! The crimes against humanity are heart wrenching…this conversation is needed and we all should feel excited about a discussion on things that matter, rather than succumb to just topics of pop culture. True, but we should also focus on real solutions and careful consideration of complex issues– not just consuming back-patting satisfactions of awareness campaigns. However, we may also need this type of humanitarian marketing campaign, just be “aware” that pros and cons exist.***
This is a critical analysis, not a blatant attempt to criticize without careful merit. I only made a few points, with many points left out. That’s why it’s a discussion. So, feel free to add anything in the comment section. **
“That invisibility to which I refer occurs because of a peculiar disposition of the eyes of those with whom I come in contact. A matter of the construction of their inner eyes, those eyes with which they look through their physical eyes upon reality.” – Ralph Ellison (in his book, Invisible Man.)
Hence, the children were never invisible.
Is Joseph Kony the new Idi Amin?What about Museveni?
Initial Reaction 1: Kony 2012, the 30-minute viral film by American NGO, Invisible Children INC, unconsciously sprung hope and rebutting thoughts: I saw Rudyard Kipling adding an extra line to The White Mans’ Burden; Chimanda Adichie highlighting another point to her The danger of a single story speech; Ralph Ellison adding another existential chapter to his 1952 novel, Invisible Man, in which he famously explored individuality and personal identity.
Research!
I also felt a deep contentment in Invisible Children’s marketing ability to produce togetherness. Ultimately, it’s up to you to support their movement. A campaign to bring people together is always welcomed. With context! My caution, however, overwhelmed the good feeling I had about the production of the film, the simplicity of the socio-politics, not the intentions of the organization. Perhaps this duality of emotion, of thought, of careful consideration and/or lack thereof continues to add levels of confusion, debate, vitriol from all sides.
One of the campaign’s most pressing point is to have more military intervention.
Interesting insight from insiders:
1.“It is totally misleading to suggest that the war is still in Uganda,” said Fred Opolot, spokesman for the Ugandan government. “I suspect that if that’s the impression they are making, they are doing it only to garner increasing financial resources for their own agenda.”
2.Rosebell Kagumire, a Ugandan journalist specialising in peace and conflict reporting, said: “This paints a picture of Uganda six or seven years ago, that is totally not how it is today. It’s highly irresponsible”.
Link to the article at the bottom of this page.
3.“There has not been a single soul from the LRA here since 2006. Now we have peace, people are back in their homes, they are planting their fields, they are starting their businesses. That is what people should help us with.” -Dr Beatrice Mpora, director of Kairos, once the center of LRA’s activities.
(These three quotes were pulled from the Telegraph. Link to article at the bottom of page)
Research!
Downtown Uganda Credit: Andrew Regan
Initial Reaction 2: I also felt small instances of disaster capitalism that mirrored the Haitian humanitarian cause and as a Haitian-American, the nostalgia grabbed me by the throat. I saw Fredrich Nietzsche reaffirming his “god is dead” assertion with “research” placed next to the grave.
Yes, “research” as an entity, because searching for truth is a human necessity but an enormous amount of sheeples, in this particular instance, have failed to act accordingly. This troublesome trend, along with many aspects, is what creates arguments from multiple angles. Yet, the overwhelming clumsiness of viewers and naive social media netizens still manage to fuel a foreign policy discussion and for that—Invisible Children deserves that credit. That’s an accomplishment worthy of praise…can we ride that wave for other current affairs or lingering important topics, um…we’ll see.
Research!
Initial Reaction 3: I’m part of the social media family and I responded online as well. I didn’t share the video; in fact, two days after the film launched, I had this to say on my Facebook status update:
“Kony 2012? No, I oppose! “White Mans Burden?” The conundrum exists! I’ve always taken humanistic approach to things, trust…I’m far from being afro-centric because it’s my attempt to see things from all angles. Why? The history of war and violence, in every corner of the earth, share the same skin.
With that said, I watched that video with one eye open. I held back tears for different reasons. It’s not that I don’t support the good intentions; I don’t support the continuous perpetuation of a broken continent. It’s the continues lack of research by YOU…the ones actually awed by the amazing video production, rather than the realities and meta-narratives that lurk behind the film cuts and gut wrenching story line.
The film is too one-dimensional for such a complex issue. I don’t support Kony 2012, I support the conscious research against him and his crimes, but damn…have you read anything positive about the continent of Africa? I sure have…TONS of articles and videos.
How about a fu**king campaign illustrating a different narrative, a change of conversational discourse? Perhaps that would enlighten people.
SMH…writing an article and video post soon.”
The makers of Kony 2012. (Photo: Glenna Gordon / Scarlett Lion)
How, in an age of protest and uprising, do YOU not consider researching a movement before joining?
Post Reaction 1: My Facebook reaction is what I would like to call a “careful emotional response.” I was coming from an African Diasporas’ perspective, in which the constant perpetuation of a dying Africa and the West again as the savior was too much to handle at that moment. As I navigate through double or triple consciousness in South Korea, I’m constantly reminded that I should relate to American and African sentiments as well.
Why do we constantly receive the same image of the continent? My emotional reaction, at the time, was due to the lack of balance. China has balance—you know poor parts exist but you also see the rich. India has balance. You’re aware of the poor slums, but also see the rich. Brazil, aware of their economic rise, but also know of the favelas. America, unbalanced…you get an international image of prosperity and freedom, but rarely see our social issues in the forefront. Africa? (though obviously not a country) Um…poor, no human agency, and need saving! This one sided story is drilled constantly…our state of mind, warped all over again. If one country struggles, the entire continent struggles with it’s image.
So, the lack of sociopolitical context prevented me from creating haste conclusions, because good intentions don’t always create good results.
Nostalgia: I was reminded by Rush Limbaugh’s attempt to ridicule President Obama for sending troops to Uganda as he defended L.R.A leader, Joseph Kony. He accused Obama of “Killing Christians.” During his show, he immediately, during his program, recanted as his staff member pointed out the atrocities committed by the “Christian group” and said, “We just found out about this today and we’re gonna do due diligence research on it”
Research!
Post Reaction 2:
The Invisible Children movement seeks to put Joseph Kony on the level of Osama Bin Laden…as a figure of a major rebel group, Lord’s Resistance Army or LRA. Kony, in contrast to Bin Laden, wants to rule via the 10 commandments. Should we label him a Christian Terrorist? Is he alive? Do we know he’s alive?
My point again: Despite the intentions, wow do you not take everything into consideration before sharing a propaganda film? Most religions have good intentions, but should you join every religion that sells you a mental product?
The film omitted sociopolitical details that brings much needed context into this very complicated situation. Socio-politics and context—our discourse, the way we converse and share information about people, culture, and nations is what needs to change. There are pros and cons to most current affairs, especially this movement.
Here are a few links that highlights significant details about the omitted socio-politics and information regarding the NGO, Invisible Children INC.
Research!
Awareness is good, but awareness with context is great!
The viral film
A well informed response by a Ugandan vlogger:
Links:
Article by a Ugandan writer for The Independent reaction and response: http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/03/07/stop-kony-yes-but-dont-stop-asking-questions/
Probably the most thought-provoking article of all:http://blackstarnews.com/news/135/ARTICLE/8007/2012-03-08.html
Invisible Inc website: http://www.invisiblechildren.com.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/
Obama administration congrats the success of the campaign: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/uganda/9132991/Joseph-Kony-2012-Obama-administration-congratulates-success-of-campaign.html
Foreign Affairs article with more context http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/136673/mareike-schomerus-tim-allen-and-koen-vlassenroot/obama-takes-on-the-lra?page=2
This article criticizes Invisible Children’s method/approach : “lack of context and nuance” and relates it to “Ethiopia in the 1980s, Somalia in the early 2000s to date, Darfur in 2004.” http://innovateafrica.tumblr.com/post/18897981642/you-dont-have-my-vote
Numbers don’t lie. This article mentions Charity Navigator, Foreign Affairs, and political scientist at Yale University.: http://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/post/18890947431/we-got-trouble
Another good insight: http://justiceinconflict.org/2012/03/07/taking-kony-2012-down-a-notch/
thank you for the article. it was very informative and insightful. i would like to ensure you that i am not here to argue with you. As i have said i am not informed, which is, i think, exactly your point in terms of people jumping on the band wagon without really understanding the whole issue. much of this is new for me. the fact is though, one of the main reasons why i am learning so much about this and participating in the dialogue is because of the "awareness" that i have gained from the Invisible Children Kony video. Yes i am sure there is probably more to it than what is presented in the video, so i appreciate your encouragement for people to look into an issue more thoroughly but i cant help but acknowledge that this began for me with that one video, that has perhaps potential to do great harm without people looking into things, but can also be the catalyst needed for people to become aware of something that was not in their scope before. thanks again and i will take some more time to look more thoroughly at the articles that you have referenced in your blog.
A catalyst indeed! I think that's what I'm hoping for as well, which is why I presented a balance. Thank you for reading and supporting. Pros and Cons to everything, so…what they [Invisible Children] did definitely has a good affect on us.
So much good thought in your blog above.
One thing I would like to point out is in your commentary:
"My emotional reaction, at tha time, was due to the lack of balance. China has balance—you know poor parts exist but you also see the rich. India has balance. You’re aware of the poor slums, but also see the rich. Brazil, aware of their economic rise, but also know of the favelas. America, unbalanced…you get an international image of prosperity and freedom, but rarely see our social issues in the forefront. Africa? Um…poor, no human agency, and need saving! "
Africa is not a country like China, Brazil, and the US. Therefore this my not be a fair comparison.
I spent about two weeks in Cote de Ivore in 2002. Africa is an amazing place, poor beyond anything I have seen yet the people are proud. There is definitely hope but so much work needs to be done and I a not sure a continent that has suffered so much from capitalistic exploitation can be saved by the same quest for profit.
I also fear another untimely death of a celebrity on the Whitney Houston scale will cause result in this being pushed to the back burner until forgotten.
Thanks for your blog, keep up the good work.
I totally agree. There is a popular blog called, "Africa is a country," which is a blog that tries to keep people up to date with the continent. I deliberately did that because "Africa" has been used in a single narrative, a single story. If there is a horrible struggle going on in Uganda, the entire continent struggles with their image.
The lack of proper discussion regarding the entire continent…our discourse needs to change. I may have to put parenthesis to illustrate my point to make it clear.
Oh, and I fixed a few spelling errors. haha
Thank you so much. Anything else I left out, please let me know. Onelove!
Thank you for the research. I don't disagree with the idea of research before support. Nor do i disagree with the argument against a production that once again portrays the Westerners as the heros or the saviours. i realize also that you give some credit to the producers of the film and also agree to the idea of a world movement and "togetherness" promoted in this film. Should we not also consider the context of the film and what they are asking?
1. i think they make it clear in the movie that Uganda is no longer affected by the LRA but Kony is still out there in hiding and the LRA still affects other parts of Africa
2.I also think that they try to show the importance of infrastructure, education and resources in order to improve living situations
3. and although you are right in the fact that children are not invisible the issue did not have much exposure as it does now. and even if it is late in terms of Uganda, should we just return back to our blindness and forget about Kony?
4. Actually the context of the movie demonstrates how to the American government (and perhaps the world) these children and this issue were invisible and very blatantly not important enough for the white house to get involved.
5. yes i agree the organization probably wants money and support but they also make it clear that there are ways to support without donating (although i also feel the emphasis to donate) and there is also a very important theme of change coming from pressure from the people (an unimportant issue all of a sudden becomes important because the people)
6. I hope anyone who is as smart as you would probably look up the organization and check financial reports and ensure financial transparency before they donate.
7. lastly, yes the movie is emotionally charged and uses children and some very strong tactics for propaganda but from what i understood i thought the main premise was to ensure that this issue does not become one that is "invisible" again and that people like Kony could be stopped.
Sir you are probably right though i am not well informed. perhaps not as much as you are but i just had a different take on it, even with my suspicion and dislike of the mob effect kind of following this is getting.
anyhow thank you for sharing your research.
sorry i just wanted to clarify something in point number 5. "unimportant" becomes "important" referring to the sudden political support that the movement gained after PEOPLE started to support the movement with the awareness raising this group has been doing over the past few years.
Thanks for your comment. I would strongly advise you to read the narrative from a Ugandan. An adult, not a Ugandan child from the video. I posted several articles below my article that will bring better perspective into the nature of interest of the Western powers and lack of underlying factors behind the a video and the ones presented that wasn't even factually correct. It's uninformed and misleading and the policy shift, that it's aiming for won't happen if facts about the crisis isn't put into the forefront. In fact, what there asking for, military intervention, IN UGANDA, is factually incorrect and is OUTDATED! There are pros and cons to a video and a video that spreads misleading information, regardless of whether it gets people talking, can do more harm than good. The potential of it doing so is very real.
Ugandan people are OUTRAGED…are you not reading or watching about this response from their own people? The Ugandan have lead the charge with their problem, not Invisible Children. They are NOT the spokesperson for a problem that isn't even present in Uganda anymore.
Mobilize the youth by presenting them with facts, first. It's flawed, which is why many Ugandan bloggers and vloggers are upset. Like saying Uganda is in "central Africa" NO, NO NO! Uganda is in East Africa. That's IMPORTANT! The approach doesn't respect the dignity of the people, THAT'S what UGANDANS are saying. It panders toward the damn narrative of a broken Africa and never illustrate the agency of the Ugandan people. The conflict is about the marginalization of North Uganda, not completely about JOSEPH KONY. Why did they refuse to mention that Josephy Kony wasn't in Uganda anymore? That's a huge mishap. That's why people are questioning whether it's activism or PR. I defended Invisible CHildren for perhaps creating a stage, that if we maintain an universal conversation, perhaps we can talk about other important things. People getting on the band wagon without having a clue of what their talking about, is troubling.
There is nothing cool about refusing to know about the complexities about an issue, whether it's about Uganda or the current, more recent crisis involving Syria.
Please, read this article that brings in details you've probably never read yet: :http://blackstarnews.com/news/135/ARTICLE/8007/2012-03-08.html
Also a recent video from CNN. A former Child Soldier speaks out against it but also gives praise for starting the conversation: http://edition.cnn.com/video/