It’s hard to believe the tragedy that seems to be everywhere in Africa. How in a world of reason, with technology as advanced as it has ever been, with the seemingly limitless resources we have to offer, that things like starvation, poverty, disease, discrimination, and many other problems are still there in Africa. Luckily, since this is an age of knowledge and interconnectedness with people around the world, more people than ever know of the problems happening in Africa, and are taking great measures in helping Africans and making a difference in their lives as well as their own. One organization that has gained the support of millions around the world in helping alleviate the pain in Africa is the non-profit organization Invisible Children.
Invisible Children was founded in 2003 when Bobby Bailey, Laren Poole, and Jason Russell, 3 filmmakers from Southern California, journeyed to Uganda, Africa in order to document their travels, when they found about the atrocities being committed by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) against the people of Uganda, who have been caught in between a war with the Government of Uganda and the Joseph Kony led LRA. One such atrocity that truly shocked them was that the LRA abducted children from local villages and forced them to fight along with them. When the three filmmakers returned to the U.S., they made the film Invisible Children: Rough Cut, and soon after, started Invisible Children.
Invisible Children’s goal is to help end the long running war against Joseph Kony and the LRA, and to counteract the atrocities committed. Invisible Children is committed to help save children from these abductions, as well as greatly help the communities in education and securing basic needs for survival. To do this, they take money from donations and use it to help Ugandans anyway possible in preventing attacks from the LRA, as well as funding education and scholarships for the children in war-torn villages. In order to get support and donations, representatives from Invisible Children travel around the U.S. and other countries, visiting schools and having screenings of the movie Invisible Children, where an actual Ugandan survivor of the atrocities of the LRA speaks and shares their story. One such tour has visited my school and has the complete support of the school, where many of the students have gotten involved and helped the organization by either donating or buying some of the products they offer, all made in Uganda. This organization is definitely gaining even more momentum, as Congress has passed bills to support their efforts, and most recently, sent 100 troops to combat the fighting in Uganda. What this organization is doing is incredible, and I can only imagine how much work they do in order to support their cause.