[View the story "#Kony2012 and its critics" on Storify ]#Kony2012 and its critics An online campaign calling for the arrest of LRA leader Joseph Kony goes viral. Storified by The Stream · Wed, Mar 07 2012 14:14:30
A new30-minute documentary calling for the arrest of Lord's Resistance Army leader Joseph Kony has gained over 7 million views since being released on March 5.For over 20 years, Kony led a brutal insurgency against Uganda’s government, and was notorious for his use of child soldiers.
As supportfor the “Kony 2012” campaign grows, its founders have also faced backlashonline for their portrayal of the conflict in Central Africa and endorsement ofUS military involvement.
Here’s aroundup of the conversation online:
The "Kony 2012" campaign video:
KONY 2012invisiblechildreninc
#KONY2012 Spread the word!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5SqcRihanna
Just ordered my #Kony2012 action kit!emma cunningham
people should pause their self-centered worlds and watch the video. Join the cause, help save lives and the future #toucheddeeply #kony2012Miranda Wachter
The group is in favour of direct military intervention, and their money supports the Ugandan government’s army and various other military forces.
BlogSpot
Here’s a photo of the founders of Invisible Children posing with weapons and personnel of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army. Both the Ugandan army and Sudan People’s Liberation Army are riddled with accusations of rape and looting, but Invisible Children defends them, arguing that the Ugandan army is “better equipped than that of any of the other affected countries”, although Kony is no longer active in Uganda and hasn’t been since 2006 by their own admission.
Military intervention may or may not be the right idea, but people supporting KONY 2012 probably don’t realize they’re supporting the Ugandan military who are themselves raping and looting away.
Yale political science professor Chris Blattman also criticised the film on his blog:
The movie feels like it’s about the filmmakers, and not the cause.
There’s also something inherently misleading, naive, maybe even dangerous, about the idea of rescuing children or saving of Africa. It’s often not an accidental choice of words, even if it’s unwitting. It hints uncomfortably of the White Man’s Burden. Worse, sometimes it does more than hint.
A photo from Invisible Children's Facebook page:
Akamaihd
Akamaihd
First, organizations like Invisible Children not only take up resources that could be used to fund more intelligent advocacy, they take up rhetorical space that could be used to develop more intelligent advocacy.
And yeah, this may seem like an absurdly academic point to raise when talking about a problem that is clearly crying out for pragmatic solutions, but, uh, the way we define problems is important. Really, really important.
Alex Miller at VICE raised a similar point:
Isn't it better to just stop criticising and start helping children in need? Or is that the kind of blind interventionist attitude that throws countries like Afghanistan into very, very long wars?
Blogger Jack McDonald at the
Kings of War blog criticises the film's director Jason Russell:
Let’s make no bones about this, Russell is pretty much on the money about the nature of Kony.
But if this works, then the world gets a little bit more dangerous.
The idea that popular opinion can be leveraged with viral marketing to induce foreign military intervention is really, really dangerous. It is immoral to try and sell a sanitised vision of foreign intervention that neglects the fact that people will die as a result.
Online, netizens criticised the film's portrayal of Ugandans:
From
@InnovateAfrica's blog: "...the Invisible Children narrative on Uganda is one that paints the people as victims, lacking agency, voice, will, or power."
This @Invisible does not own my story, has no permission to sell it for their gains. I shall sell mine & my people's story for our gainTMS Ruge
"Giving" Africans a voice is misleading. They have always had a voice. The question is: Are orgs/dev workers/leaders from the west listeningKaren Attiah
#StopKony2012 is targeting privileged,educated,mostly white youth to care abt Africa by fighting LRA.I expect a more nuanced formula by now.Semhar
Since when did these white American film makers become the most important authority on central African political affairs? #stopkony #stopICSoFiyah
Somewhere in Africa, a man is making a film that will raise awareness about why some U.S. & U.K. leaders should also face war crimes chargesMikill Pane
Ugandan blogger Rosebell Kagumire added:
Western Media coverage of things like #KONY2012 video refuses to accept there were local initiatives to end the war. Ask #BettyBigombeRosebell Kagumire
@jwsal this is not about partnership it abt a single american coming to uganda to promise heaven + earth like he's a savior. thats wot it isRosebell Kagumire