Not LDR, but IMPORTANT

[sarahrosestevey]

This is for awareness. We aren't stupid, we do realize there are similar things happening like this in the world. This thread isn't about them, it is about this specific incident.

Some people need to be a bit nicer and not turn a thread such as this into a debate.

[mllebamako]

I'm not going to argue that awareness is a bad thing. Of course, it's good for people to be informed and knowledgeable about various issues. But I guess the frustrating thing for me is this trend of "viral armchair activism". One morning you wake up and your facebook newsfeed is flooded with posts about breast cancer awareness, protests in Egypt, the "invisible" children, or whatever the cause du jour is. And for a few days or maybe even a few weeks, people will tweet #kony2012 and share the video on facebook. And then...? And then probably nothing further. But it made us feel good about ourselves to share this cause, to spread awareness on an issue that most of us probably know very little about. And is all this superficial awareness really going to change things and to help people in the long run?

And lastly, I don't particularly think that the "helping people in my own country first" is a good argument but I also don't see the big deal with people choosing whatever causes interest them, in whatever country. People are going to donate their time and/or money to the organizations that touch them, that relate to their interests or their passions and that is fine. There are so many problems in this world that you can't possibly focus on all of them, so why not concentrate on the ones that mean something to you.

[Malaga]

And for a few days or maybe even a few weeks, people will tweet #kony2012 and share the video on facebook. And then...? And then probably nothing further. But it made us feel good about ourselves to share this cause, to spread awareness on an issue that most of us probably know very little about. And is all this superficial awareness really going to change things and to help people in the long run?

If it's creating clamor which is going to activate the media and put pressure on the decision makers, then it does help in the long run. Masses are never educated in depth, or actively involved for long term, why expect them to be? It's not realistic. What's the alternative to social media activism anyway? People contribute in the way they can. There are plenty of activists on the field working hands on this, but if hardly anyone knows about their efforts, there is little hope that something will change soon in the grand scheme of things. They need support from the public at home, media support, public opinion creating buzz for them, highlighting the problem. It's all part of one mechanism. We can look down upon these "passive activists", but what's more helpful to the cause, five thousand people being informed about the issue for years (but still not working directly on it) or five million people buzzing about it for three months on social networks and public events?

[digitalfever]

If it's creating clamor which is going to activate the media and put pressure on the decision makers, then it does help in the long run. Masses are never educated in depth, or actively involved for long term, why expect them to be? It's not realistic. What's the alternative to social media activism anyway? People contribute in the way they can. There are plenty of activists on the field working hands on this, but if hardly anyone knows about their efforts, there is little hope that something will change soon in the grand scheme of things. They need support from the public at home, media support, public opinion creating buzz for them, highlighting the problem. It's all part of one mechanism. We can look down upon these "passive activists", but what's more helpful to the cause, five thousand people being informed about the issue for years (but still not working directly on it) or five million people buzzing about it for three months on social networks and public events?

I agree. While the charity might not be the most reputable people are now for a short period of time paying attention. And isn’t that the point of a well made, attention grabbing clip? To grab the attention of individuals that would otherwise be paying attention to celebrity gossip. The assumption here is that if one person becomes passionate about this subject out of the millions that are now tweeting, posting this on twitter, tumblr etc... There will be one more person joining the fight.
The fact is: people just don’t know.

[Xanahtas]

This cause is an awareness cause, trying to make him 'famous' so that people know whats going on and to prove to the US government that people care, this is human power, nothing to do with giving money to help them sort it, your giving money to help them raise awareness more than anything.

[MissButterfly]

I suggest reading this website too: https://visiblechildren.tumblr.com/
I agree that what this project is about is very good and important, just the people organizing it making 90000 dollars a year is not the way to go. Also just 30% of the money going there, to the actual project is ridiculous.
I really think that the author is right, we should keep this about Joseph Kony and not about KONY 2012. Raising awareness is great! But I suggest not spending money on this organisation...

[efish1042]

In the interest of increasing awareness about the issue and IC- here's a link that challenges the anti IC links. Take it how you will.
https://invisible.tumblr.com/

[floridaellen]

I'm very surprised that more people did not already know about this.

Then again, my high school had a very active chapter of Invisible Children so we had various school presentations about the issues in Uganda and even other surrounding countries. So I was a little spoiled!

It is helping to raise awareness which is obviously needed but I agree that fiscally Invisible Children may not be the best charity to donate money.

Personally, I tend to support charities such as Doctors Without Borders (almost 90% of money donated goes to services) and Catholic Relief Services (95%). But really, supporting any charity helps the world! Some charities are just more efficient than others so do your homework. Do not let anyone's opinions stop you from donating to the cause of your choice!


--- I hope this post makes sense. I've been awake far too long. ---