Il Mio Mondo

Il Mio Mondo
Doing what I love!

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Activism

Thanks to social media, KONY 2012 went viral and caught the attention of millions of people. Suddenly, more people are interested in humanitarian aid in Africa. This is great, now how do we go about helping.

As leader of the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army), Joseph Kony and his group have attacked and murdered the people of northern Uganda. Many more were riped from their homes and forced to live in camps that didn't provide the basics necessities of life. The most innocent of the LRA attacks were children. They were abducted and forced to be soldiers, cooks, porters, or sex slaves. Many more were made to kill others, even relatives. Some escaped, but most faced this horrific reality.

There were those who tried to protect their children from being abducted, community workers and aid workers also tried to protect them, but this helped few. Finally, in 2006 there was a cease fire between the LRA and the government. The war has stopped and the people of northern Africa have gone back to their villages and are beginning to rebuild their lives. The Ugandan government struggles with state services and still need a great deal of technical and financial help.

The LRA is no longer in northern Uganda, but they have moved to neighboring countries and people in isolated communities are at risk. President Obama approved sending military advisers to work with Ugandan and other armed forces to help bring down the LRA. This has done little to relieve the dreadful fear the people are under, Joseph Kony is still at large.

So, what can we do? Not only for the people of Africa, but for any cause that we are passionate about.

Be an informed activists. Know the facts! The atrocities Kony and the LRA have inflicted is not a new issue. Kony along with his forces have terrorized people for over two decades. Read UN reports, International relief websites like Human Rights Watch. If we better understand the issue we can better respond. We also need to give or raise money. There are a lot of causes out there, choose your cause and dedicate yourself to making a financial contribution. If your unable to provide financial support, then help spread the word about reputable non-governmental agencies who are supporting the cause to help raise money.  If everyone gave just $1, it would make a huge difference. Finally, use your voice!Call or write elected officials, they listen when there are large numbers of people talking about the same issue.

Nobody deserves to live through such horrific events. I wish I could do more, even if just to wrap my arms around each person and tell them everything will be okay. All I can do is give as much as I can, spread the word, and keep informed. I pray that those that face such a terrible and horrific plight find strength and determination to get through it. We truly are one, one united world where no matter how much distance or difference separate us, we stand together, for each other.

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