Over the weekend, I watched “Kony 2012″ and here are some of my thoughts.
First, I thought the quality was fantastic. Some have said that it’s “too slick” – it’s not and please, let’s encourage good work and discourage mediocrity. We don’t need non-profits, NGO’s, ministries, etc. saying, “We don’t want to make it too good.” Well done Invisible Children.
Second, I am glad they chose to feature Joseph Kony on this one. When I heard they were doing that, I thought two things. First, “Yeah it’s time to change it up” and then two, “Wow, this is going to get even more political and messy.” Still, I had no clue that it would become this controversial and this is “good controversy” which I will unpack another time.
Third, clearly they have succeeded in making “Kony famous”. According to a post on Mashable “With more than 100 million views in six days, Kony 2012, a 30-minute documentary about Ugandan rebel leader Joseph Kony, has become the most viral video in history”. Further, it speaks well for our culture. Do we share Rebecca Black videos because we have nothing better to share?
Four, Invisible Children does a good job in understanding who they are, who they are not and being true to that. Yes, I’ll admit being a thirty-something American-MiddleEastern Northeasterner, there’s a lot of things that sound odd to me when I’m listening to a 20-something from California interview a boy in Uganda trying to speak his heart in broken English. Interviews in general are awkward and that’s part of why many of us prefer memoirs and first hand testimonies but when you don’t have a “microphone”, it’s a good thing when someone gives you one.
I’m glad Jason Russell and his friends decided to go to Uganda instead of vacation some where. Further, I’m glad they didn’t just go to Uganda and decide to only share what they found with their closest family and friends. Issues like human trafficking and forced child soldiers are difficult for many of us in the West to understand. The stories in these films are needed to bring these issues to light.
Fifth, I am grateful for just about any thing that gets people talking about something that’s not American Idol or Kim Kardashian. Even more so when it comes to global issues that awaken us from our apathy and and self-centeredness. This is true for those in the Church and for those outside of it. The world is messed up, over there and right here, we are allmessed up, we can virtually all agree on this. Therefore, we should do our part to bring goodness to it. We’ll all have different ideas about that, so let’s talk.
These are important conversations, we certainly need to do more than watch and converse and for many of us who have decided (and will decide) to go further with this cause or one similar, we should be grateful and supportive. Read more, learn more, give more, share more, pray more …
Soon, I will be posting my take on some of the criticism Invisible Children receives. Some may be legit, some I find to be a bit unfair. Feel free to offer your take.
You can watch the 30 minute documentary here or below.
And learn more www.invisiblechildren.com
and then after that, Google Joseph Kony.
Looking forward to your next blog!