Stop Kony 2012: I Can't Stop

Last night, I had the pleasure and disdain of watching a very important documentary on Youtube that shaped the way I see the world and my responsibility as a global citizen.



For those who have been in the dark about this issue, like I have, there is a man in Africa by the name of Joseph Kony. Kony leads a group of rebels called the L.R.A. (Lord's Resistance Army). This "army" is comprised of children that his henchmen and him have captured, raped, killed and forced to join his group and kill others with guns as child rebel soldiers. Seeing that these children are taken away and forgotten about, they're referred to as the "Invisible Children." These children have been suffering at the hands of LRA for years.

The documentary is well shot and convincingly gets its message across. The director and main narrator, Jason Russell, explains his experiences working with the Invisible Children organization and spreading the word about the mistreatment of these children in Africa and fighting to put an end to Kony and his tyranny. There was something inside me that was building a fire as I watch every moment and learn every fact about the Stop Kony movement. I was aware that evil existed in the world, but not to this magnitude. This is something different; something bigger than myself or anyone else that I can imagine. We're talking about a world criminal; the most dangerous man in the world. Ironically, the U.S. had sought out to find Bin Laden and stop Gaddafi, but the efforts to put an end to Kony has never been emphasized (of course, this is due to underlying U.S. interests and not the concept of world justice).

Ultimately, the question comes down to what am I going to do about it? After college, the fire I had in me to create change fizzled out; I got caught up in my own world and creating a difference for me. But now, there is a global threat on our hands that has been occurring for more than 20 years; before I was born, and I have the ability to stop it. I'm afraid that if I don't keep this story in my mind's eye, then I will forget and go back to my complacent ways. I can't allow that to happen. For some, this may be a bandwagon trend that'll go away in a couple of days; for others, this is something that needs to be addressed and acted on.

If anyone reading this wants to do something inherently good and take action to spread the word about Joseph Kony to stop him, then do your research and get active. If not, then I could understand; it's not easy to feel empowered to create change. It can be scary and not much people know how to handle it, much less make it a priority. Either way, I am a strong believer in stopping villainy and as all of us can be the heroes we need to put an end to this tyrant.

-Video Vix[o]n