Dear University of Alabama Students,
Next time you walk through campus, take a look at the numerous clubs, causes, and school functions being advertised. Posters, signs, and fliers can be seen on almost every street light, electric pole, or available cork board as far as the eye can see. Although they are adorned with offers of free baked goods, t-shirts, or even meals, these seemingly simple statements work wonders for the organizations they promote. Advertisements for the Kayak Club, UA Intramurals, The Woodlands, and countless others are blatantly obvious across campus but promotion for the University of Alabama “Invisible Children” campaign is surprisingly absent.
The “Invisible Children” organization is the brain child of three young film producers: Laren Pool, Jason Russell, and Bobby Bailey (“Invisible Children.org”). After traveling to Uganda and witnessing first hand the atrocities committed by Joseph Kony and his rebel militia, the three young men decided to rally up their own army. Kony, the only person to be indicted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, accumulates his forces by kidnapping children as young as seven or eight years old. He force-feeds these children drugs and alcohol, and brain-washes them using fear and intimidation (“Invisible Children Presents: The Rescue”). These once innocent children are forced to commit unspeakable acts; one young boy not only witnessed his brother’s murder, but also was commanded to drop a baby into a river, burn a family alive, and aid in the slaughter of an entire Ugandan village for fear of being killed himself. If they are ever returned to their families, these ‘invisible children’ are almost unrecognizable. Due to the fact that their childhood innocence was ripped away, these children come back as hollow, emotionless monsters ("Invisible Children Presents: The Rescue"). Pool, Russell, and Bailey realize the people who can make the biggest difference aren’t dressed in expensive suits and sitting behind desks; they’re ordinary, everyday young people like you and I. The first step in fulfilling their dream of Ugandan peace is making the entire UA campus aware of their “Invisible Children” organization.
The lack of advertising for “Invisible Children” across the University of Alabama is evident and upsetting. There is actually a screening of “Invisible Children’s” new documentary, “The Rescue”, being shown at Graves Hall on Friday October 14th.The awareness on campus for this event was extremely low. Also, upon searching for a University of Alabama division of “Invisible Children” on Google, a commonly used search engine, there were results for both Birmingham and Huntsville but nothing for the main Tuscaloosa campus. There are clubs and organizations on campus dedicated to advertising important school functions so there is truly no reason why the “Invisible Children” message isn’t reaching all over campus. UA’s student ad team placed second in a national championship in Washington, D.C for both their humorous and hard-hitting ads speaking out against drunk driving and underage drinking (“UA News”). Campus-wide awareness starts by recognizing there is a problem. Figuring out a solution will be up to the UA students.
As a united force, we students can become surprisingly powerful. If all students involved or interested in the “Invisible Children” cause worked together to advertise on UA’s campus it could be a well-organized and effective campaign. The campaign would require posters, signs, and offers of free food to attract a wide variety of people on campus. Once the forces are assembled, it will be much easier to spread the word about “Invisible Children” all over campus; with numerous people working efficiently and passionately, not much could stand in the way. Another potential solution could be spreading the word to University professors; teachers have the power to both influence their students with knowledge and the opportunity for extra credit. If even just a few professors made attending the screening of “The Rescue” an extra credit assignment, students would have incentive to attend the meeting and join the worthwhile cause it promotes. Finally, if individual students took the initiative to host their own screenings, the ideals of this organization would be spread throughout campus on a more personal level. By holding a screening in your dorm room, apartment, or even a room at the Ferguson Center, close friends are more inclined to support you and attend. These friends in turn invite their other friends and soon enough, what started as a small get-together explodes in to a full-blown event.
It’s a shame that an organization that has made such an impact in peoples’ lives gets such little support from a huge school like the University of Alabama. Simple hand-drawn posters, homemade fliers, or handouts would make a world of difference if many people joined forces against Joseph Kony’s tyranny. We have an award-winning advertising team so there is no excuse why UA’s division of “Invisible Children” isn’t as widely popular as those of UAB and UAH. By uniting as a team to put up campus-wide advertisements or hosting dorm, apartment, or Ferguson Center screening sessions, individual students can impact the lives of innumerable others. Teachers need to become involved too by speaking to their classes about upcoming “Invisible Children” events and even making attending “The Rescue” an optional extra-credit assignment. The founders of “Invisible Children” would want each and every person on campus to feel like they alone can have an impact on peoples’ lives all over the world, and as Gandhi once said “Be the change that you want to see in the world.”
Works Cited
1. "Ad Team at UA Places Second in National Competition." UA News 7/16/2009: n. pag. Web. 10 Oct 2009.
2. "The Rescue: Official Rescue Plan Packet." Invisible Children Presents: The Rescue. 4/24/2009. Invisible Children.org, Web. 10 Oct 2009.
3. "About the Team." Invisible Children. 10/10/2009. Invisible Children.org, Web. 10 Oct 2009.
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