The Daily What’s effective takedown of the Invisible Children movement. We don’t agree with every point here, but again, we want to encourage you guys to think about this on your own. So … read.
Our programs are Ugandan inspired and Ugandan led. As in they were created by Ugandans for Ugandans. Nobody is more aware of the dangers of the “White Man’s Burder” [sic] messiah complex than Invisible Children. Our programs actively seek to empower Ugandans to help themselves. Every. Single. Program.Invisible Children’s John Rudolph Beaton has written a response to criticisms the group’s Kony 2012 campaign has faced, specifically from Visible Children. He’s clear though, that he’s not speaking for his group: “This is my own personal, response and does not reflect the views of any person or any organization besides myself.”
Because we’re still getting messages about this (no need to send any more, we’re aware), here’s a link to our Kony 2012 coverage so far, including our think-piece on the matter. A lot of criticism of the Invisible Children movement has cropped up today, criticism which the movement itself has responded to. “Some organizations focus exclusively on documenting human rights abuses, some focus exclusively on international advocacy or awareness, and some focus exclusively on, on-the-ground development,” the group claims. “We do all three. At the same time. This comprehensive model is intentional and has shown to be very effective.”
No one wants a boring documentary on Africa. Maybe we have to make it pop, and we have to make it cool. We view ourself as the Pixar of human rights stories.“Kony 2012” director Jason Russell • Making a telling point in an interview with the New York Times about his video, which has faced popularity and scorn in equal measures. The success of the video — far beyond your average viral video — has pushed its spread far beyond the traditional activism video, but not without criticism. Should Pixar be an example for an activist movement?
The Office of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict answers questions about UN work to address LRA operations.
How does the LRA recruit children and what is their role?
What are the aspirations of the LRA?
What are other violations are committed against children by the LRA?
What has the United Nations done to address the violations committed against children by the LRA?
UNICEF has been working for decades to protect children from violence/abuse. But there’s still much to be done.
UNICEF: Video on The Paris Principles: agreement to end the use of children in war
UNICEF: More on child soliders
International Criminal Court on the Situation in Uganda
Find out if your country has signed the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in armed conflict.
What the United Nations has to say about the Lord’s Resistance Army. Key line: “However, attacking the LRA is a very tricky proposition because there are many children in the ranks of the LRA and repercussions on the civilian populations have to be carefully calibrated.”
Look at the staff page on our website to see how many Africans work with us. It’s not as if we’re all white guys from San Diego.Invisible Children “Director of Ideology” Jedidiah Jenkins • Giving GOOD one of the first interviews on behalf of the embattled organization since they initially posted a rebuttal to early criticisms on their website. During the interview, the GOOD reporter asked Jenkins what he would say directly to critics if given the opportunity. “Our films are made for high school children. We make films that speak the language of kids,” he said, adding, “Our films weren’t made to be scrutinized by the Guardian.” source (via • follow)
An organization called African Youth Initiative Network screened the now-infamous KONY 2012 documentary for thousands of Northern Ugandan men, women, and children on Tuesday. While some were confused by the film’s narrative, many were angered by it’s portrayal of their country and near-celebrity status that it bestowed upon Joseph Kony. “If people in those countries care about us, they will not wear t-shirts with pictures of Joseph Kony for any reason,” said one attendee, adding, “that would celebrate our suffering.” source
It’s bad, guys. He even showed up on TMZ. Russell, who has faced a ton of praise and criticism in recent weeks over his group’s successful attempt to make Joseph Kony famous, was detained Thursday for public drunkenness, masturbating in public and vandalizing cars on the streets of San Diego, the group’s American home base. Officials realized that he was having a bit of a breakdown and hospitalized him. “Jason Russell was unfortunately hospitalized yesterday suffering from exhaustion, dehydration, and malnutrition,” the CEO of Invisible Children, Ben Keesey, said in a statement. “He is now receiving medical care and is focused on getting better. The past two weeks have taken a severe emotional toll on all of us, Jason especially, and that toll manifested itself in an unfortunate incident yesterday.” In case anyone’s morbidly curious, we’ll let you head over to TMZ yourselves. No link necessary. source
Not all of Invisible Children’s efforts were as slick as Kony 2012: For example, this 2006 clip, which is kinda like a reeeeeally bad episode of “Glee.”
The reporter...
I can’t add much to what’s already been (and will be) ...
One of the perks of being an early employee...
Over the last 90 days, the Digg...
#FMMDI (at 30 Rockefeller Plaza)
Thanks. I guess my thoughts are as follows:
1. I think...
We thought a few thousand people would see the film, but in less than a week, millions of people around the world saw it. While that attention was great for raising awareness about Joseph Kony, it also brought a lot of attention to Jason and, because of how personal the film is, many of the attacks against it were also very personal, and Jason took them very hard.Danica Russell • From a statement on the very public breakdown suffered by her husband Jason yesterday, one of the co-founders of Invisible Children and the narrator of “Kony 2012.” A statement released yesterday by the organization’s CEO, Ben Keesey, struck a similar tone – emphasizing concern for Russell’s “health issue” and suggesting it may have been a by-product of scrutiny and stress from the mega-success of their viral video. Setting aside the arguments about the merits or demerits of “Kony 2012” itself, this is a striking lesson in the personal implications of the viral video culture. One can make something that may touch thousands, or even millions, but that can come with mental and emotional costs that may seem remote and abstract while sitting in front of Final Cut Pro. Best wishes to Russell and his family during such a difficult ordeal. source (via • follow)
Without the Internet and YouTube, [Joseph Kony’s] dastardly deeds would not resonate with politicians. When you get 100 million Americans looking at something, you will get our attention.Sen. Lindsey Graham • On the effect Kony 2012 has had on lawmakers. Yesterday, over a third of the Senate co-sponsored a bill condemning Kony’s actions; now, Graham and other members of Congress are working on a “bounty bill” to help encourage the capture (or “disappearing,” shall we say) of Kony, the now-infamous Ugandan warlord. Graham’s bosom buddy, John McCain, echoed his colleague’s sentiments, saying that “if not ending up dead, [Kony] could end up in the International Criminal Court, and it’d be a wonderful thing.” Now, there’s been a lot of controversy surrounding Kony 2012 and its creators; however, regardless of what you think of the organization behind the effort, it’s inspiring that something as simple as a YouTube video can actually spur Congress into action. It’s also nice to see Democrats and Republicans agree on something for once. source (via • follow)
toxiedesigns asks: Hey it is me again. I just heard about a documentary called Kony 2012 ;) JK It is called "The Island President" about the President of Maldives and the island nation that is been eaten away by the rising sea level. Since you have way more internet present. Can you think about sharing with your followers some info about it?
» SFB says: We actually had a couple stories about this president of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, from about a month and a half ago. Essentially, he lost power under not-the-greatest circumstances, amid allegations he forced out a judge who supported the opposition, though he later claimed it was a “coup.” He was the first democratically-elected president in the country, and now he’s gone. Certainly the documentary is worth a mention. He’s an interesting figure — he held an underwater cabinet meeting, for pete’s sake! — no matter what happened. (In fact, the director now hopes to use the documentary as evidence Nasheed was removed in a coup.) But we’ll say the same thing with this doc we said about “Kony 2012”: Treat it like a good Wikipedia article. It’s a starting point for your research, not an end point. — Ernie @ SFB
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