Invisible Children vs The Haters

Written by John Meloche. Posted in Commentary, Featured, Media, Society & Culture

Tagged: , , ,

Published on March 08, 2012 with 6 Comments

In a matter of one day the creators of the viral sensation “Kony 2012″ went from the darlings of the world to the subject of conspiracy due to aparent shady financials. The media is full of misguided comments relating to Invisible Children spending 68% of its funds on salary or travel. As if they are out lavishly spending millions from donations. People feel manipulated by their compelling documentary which lead them to donate to a cause they did not understand. Yet why are we so quick to judge this organization who only moments prior had moved us and awakened our hearts to their message?

Perhaps we are too easily guided and misguided. For starters a simple post from an university student claiming their financials were subject cause millions to take his claims as fact. And so the unraveling began. Each layer reveled facts which painted an even less pretty picture. A picture in which only 23% of the revenue went to rebuilding Uganda and the world was shocked, sucked into the web of deceit.

Oh how quick we are to loose sight of the message, to forget the intent of movement. Of course it did not take long for Invisible Children to step up and defend itself from the hungry wolves waiting to devour them. Perhaps the reason only 23% had gone directly to Uganda projects was beacause that was only one of Invisible Children s actually missions. Here are their 3 main missions:

  1.  Make the world aware of the LRA. This includes making documentary films and touring them around the world so that they are seen for free by millions of people.
  2.  Channel energy from viewers of IC films into large-scale advocacy campaigns to stop the LRA and protect civilians.
  3.  Operate programs on the ground in LRA-affected areas that provide protection, rehabilitation and development assistance.

To further silence the critics they posted detailed analysis of their financials which shows that 80% of the revenue is directed at the above 3 missions. The other 20% goes towards salaries, management and fundraising. So how much actually goes to the three main founders and film makers? 2.93% goes towards their salaries which comes to about $87,500 per person. So the fuss at the end of the day comes down to three guys makings a little more then the average person. Is this outrageous or unethical? Not by any means, this represents a fair wage for three people who run a non-profit that generates close to $14 million a year and extends itself deeply into many projects.

What is lost among the controversy is the actual message. The message that Joseph Kony is a man who needs to be stopped and brought to justice for his crimes. Not many can stand up against Invisible Children for their message or their goals. Sure some will say its not this simple or perhaps the problem wont end. Really they are not saying everything is going to be perfect once Kony is captured or killed. What they are saying is that its time the world knows what he has done, its time the world is aware that nearly 500,000 people have gone missing during his reign of terror.

How many of us knew this was going on a few days ago? How many of us would have seen his picture and knew his name was Joseph Kony? So why should we raise our heads in arrogance and critic the people who made us aware.

They have succeed at their first goal, and have made us aware through film. This film did cost money to produce. Lest we forget the founders are film makers. They will not deny that as it is one of their main goals. They used social media to capture us and it was the best example of the power of social media to date..

Of course if you have a problem with their methods I have one simple solution for you. Don’t give them your money! Please also don’t go around looking for ways to incriminate the same people who delivered the message to you. It leaves a taste of ignorance behind.

In the matter of two days Invisible Children changed the world with Kony 2012, they brought a real issue to life and yet many would still rather pick them apart. Ignorance seemingly has shifted from a lack of knowledge to the lack of truth.

 

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  • http://twitter.com/deanrobertsnet Dean Aaron Roberts

    Thanks for the link on my blog. Yes, I do disagree with their methods, and the Ugandan people do too. So say a reliable source: http://deanroberts.net/2012/03/another-charitys-response-to-the-invisible-children-campaign-kony12/

    And therefore, we have every right to scrutinise, question and hold back. 

    Thanks for engaging.

    • http://twitter.com/melochejohn John Meloche

      People will disagree with their methods sure, I find it unfortunate that more people would like to find fault as if they are blindly scamming us. I cant agree that Uganda disagrees. Sure a report says this is White propaganda, lets not forget the government has welcomed they US troops  to support their mission to capture Kony. 

  • Tomgergous

     Look into most charity’s and non profit organizations and you will find some faults in finances. Look at how much pastors get paid at a church, is what they do on a weekly basis sometimes preaching 2-4 times a month justify their salary? Probably not, but we should focus on the important aspects of the message

  • http://www.facebook.com/trish.ouellette Trish Ouellette

    John, I’m disappointed that you feel the need for name calling in your article. Your title, ” Invisible Children vs The Haters”, “the hungry wolves waiting to devour them”, and your comment you posted on my FB “if you care” you can read further the comments I made in my article. This shows a lack of unprofessionalism and the respect of other opinions. It is clear you are writing from your emotions and feel the need to be extremely defensive.
    John, does this mean that anyone who disagrees with the Kony 2012 Movement are haters? Haters of what?
    We can all certainly agree that Joseph Kony is a monster and justice is needed for the lives of the children and others he has killed and enslaved.
    I applaud Invisible Children for an excellent job of raising awareness of modern day slavery (child soldiers) to many who were unaware. However, to say we were all ignorant to this fact is not the case…I have known about the LRA and Joseph Kony for quite some time as I know many others have as well.
    My reason for not agreeing with this movement has nothing to do with how they manage their finances, but it is their method.
    Dr. David Batstone (author and co-founder of Not for Sale) made a comment after the video came out that I totally agree with. He says it so much more intelligently than I could so I will just give you his exact quote:

    I
    am not bashing Invisible Children here. For some time those of you who
    follow me know that I’m troubled with the obsession with “awareness” –
    we’ll pour millions of dollars into it – but are reluctant to fund
    innovative projects that actually address poverty and injustice. Read
    below: “Treating awareness as a goal in and of itself risks
    compassion fatigue — most people only have so much time and energy to
    devote to far-away causes — and ultimately squanders political momentum
    that could be used to push for effective solutions. ” from David Batstone

    John we all have the right to disagree and certainly question and hold back. Don’t go hating on those who don’t share your opinion.

    Thanks!

  • http://www.facebook.com/trish.ouellette Trish Ouellette

    Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade–and How We Can Fight It http://www.amazon.comHuman
    trafficking generates $32 billion annually and enslaves over 30 million
    people, half of them children. Award-winning journalist David Batstone,
    whom Bono calls “a heroic character,” profiles the new generation of
    abolitionists who are leading the movement. This groundbreaking global
    rep…For those who would like to know more about modern day slavery, I highly recommend this book. It not only raises awareness, but gives you steps to become actively involved in fighting modern day slavery. John, actually I have given this book to some family members…I’m not sure what they did with them, but you could probably get their copy.

  • bruceewilson

    Academics who actually study the region in question – Northern Uganda and the DR Congo, have been scathingly dismissive of Invisible Children’s efforts as having little to nothing to do with the problems of the region or even making them worse, and Ugandans themselves have thrown rocks at the projection screens during two attempted screenings of the KONY 2012 videos in Uganda.

    Please, get your facts straight. 

    Last year, Ugandan police and troops kicked 20,000 Northern Ugandans off their lands and burned their homes – Invisible Children seems have cared not a whit about that. Is human rights even the issue? – Apparently it is a lesser priority for the nonprofit.