Action From Knowledge

On Tuesday, March 5th, Kony 2012 went viral. This video exposed to Americans what is currently going on in Uganda. It told the story of a man named Joseph Kony, who, for the past 26 years, has kidnapped children out of their beds. In the first decade that he was in power, he had taken 8,000 children. That's roughly two kids a day. He would force young males into his war efforts, a guerilla tactics group called the Lords Resistance Army (LRA), and young women were forced into sex slavery. His vision? To create a government based and ruled upon the Ten Commandments.

I, along with many other people, have not been shy in telling where I stand. This man must be brought down. He should not be allowed to continue these horrible acts. The numbers that appeared in the video were astonishing to say the least. I felt my heart ache with each new statistic that appeared on my computer screen. And, after only 13:25 of the video, I knew that I had to try and do something. I wanted to help out all those people in Uganda, the Conga, and Sudan. The children needed to be saved. Almost right away, I began to send out Tweets, Facebook statuses, e-mail, etc. I sent the video to everyone that I saw online that night. I began talking about it, and even brought it to my school. A few had already viewed the video, but many were still way in the dark. So I took the time to explain the little that I knew.

But that's all I had, was a little. There was, and still is, so much that I don't truly know about this situation. As a typical American, I only knew what was going on in my own country, and even then, I wasn't all that informed. I'm not very bug on watching the news. Not that I have anything against it, I simply am never around when it's on the television. But still, I wanted to do something.

After reading many other articles and blogs from other people, on big thing was floating around. Most people had similar thoughts. Others were looking for information, or extending the knowledge that they had. No doubt the things going on in Uganda are horrible. Yes, that man should be caught and arrested. But what can we do? It doesn't involve us, and we aren't even close to them.

Another thing that I saw floating around rather shocked me. These people still agreed that things were horrible, but didn't agree with the video. They said that it felt out too much. They don't believe that simply spreading the word, one of the biggest points of the video, would truly show any help, that the video was simply a waste of time and why should we help now when it has been going on for a long time...

But how do you get something to happen? How does a cause start? How do you get people to fight along side you in protest?

Information and education!

People need to be aware of what's going on before they can take a stand. They need to be informed of the situation before they can pick a side, let alone come up with ideas or plans on how to help. Kony 2012 did just that. The video did a good job at showing the things that were going on in Uganda. They even talked of the efforts that the Invisible Children, a group founded by the same individuals that made the video, are taking in order to have justice. And they kept very realistic ideals with it. They are not sending people to Uganda, or trying to have solders shipped over there. They are informing people. They travel throughout the country talking to people about the things going on.

And although the Invisible Children may have shady parts, this shouldn't take you away from the cause. You don't need to be a part of them to care about the situation. Take a stand. Raise your voice. Pressure the government into giving their all into catching Kony. Because in the end, it will be with our help that Joseph Kony will be put behind bars.

So, spread the word. That is the key. Before anything can take place, before anything can happen, people need to know. The plans will come from those that care. And for people to care, they need to know. If you know, then it is up to you to let the person next to you know and then they must tell the next. The more people that know, the sooner the government will know that people care. When people care, then the government will continue their actions in assisting Uganda! So, make Kony famous! Whether it's through Invisible Children, or because your heart asks you to, do it for the children!