Yesterday in Ms. Ventura's class, we watched the Invisible Children documentary, about three friends who traveled to Sudan in order to experience the war going on in Africa first hand. What they found were extremely difficult living conditions, and kids who had to run away from their homes at night to escape rebel groups. They sleep together in Verandas, safer communities far away from their home villages. The story behind the Invisible Children foundation began in Northern Uganda, where Joseph Kony began a rebel movement against an oppressive government. The rebellion got way out of hand, however, and Kony is now continuing the violence just for the sake of it, abducting young children who he believes he can brainwash and turn into ruthless killers. Many abducted children are forced to kill, out of fear that they themselves will die unless the follow orders.
The situation that I saw in the movie was a rude awakening for me, as I got to see firsthand the kind of suffering that the oppressed children face in Northern Uganda and Sudan. The thing that shocked me the most was the children's attitudes in the Verandas. Most of them remain optimistic and find joy in small things. They dance, sing, and study with their friends.
The purpose of Invisible Children is for the war to get publicity and for the US government to take action in order to stop Joseph Kony. I really believe it is a great cause and plan on donating to the foundation.
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