There was a post on Metafilter a couple of days back linking to this video, Kony 2012, by a San Diego-based charity group called Invisible Children. They aim to make 2012 the year that marks the end of Joseph Kony's reign of terror. I've posted often enough about Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army, so I was interested. Unfortunately the video was so smug and self-regarding that I couldn't make it past three minutes (it's a half-hour film).
Now today there's a piece at the Guardian's CiF. The video's gone viral; currently with nearly 37 million views. The author, Nicky Woolf, describes the video as "undeniably powerful, if faintly kitsch", and argues that, despite its faults, it's at least helping to publicise the atrocities of the LRA. Which can't be a bad thing. Though if you don't know about Kony, and his indictment for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, then perhaps you haven't been paying much attention. So anyway I went back and had another look. This time I made it to four minutes before giving up.
As it happens I'm not the only one who was nauseated by the self-regard of these latter-day saviours of our benighted African cousins. First of all, test how your gag reflex is working with this picture of our heroes, the three Invisible Children founders, posing with the Sudan People's Liberation Army. Then check some of the other links at this comment at CiF [update: this comment's also worth a read]. And then read this.
I wonder how many of those 37 million viewers actually made it past the opening few minutes.
thank you for posting these pieces- good range of perspectives
Posted by: Lauri Marder | March 10, 2012 at 01:32 PM