Organization seeks to see invisible children
A documentary following a group of three students travel to Uganda was hosted by The Invisible Children Club at USU, Wednesday in an effort to raise awareness of the Ugandan problems.
Margaret Mead, noted anthropologist of the 1930s, said, “Don’t ever doubt that a small group of individuals can change the world, because that’s all that ever has.” The Invisible Children organization agrees to live by this quote, said Daniel Trigg, roadie and on-tour promoter of the organization’s new documentary.
Invisible Children first began as a documentary made by three young men who decided to film the war in Northern Uganda. This documentary eventually spread out to be a multi-million dollar organization, said Sarah Dingman, an Invisible Children roadie.
The war itself is large and complex, Dingman said of the twenty year saga that has torn families apart and all but destroyed parts of Northern Uganda. When the current president of Uganda, from southern Uganda, was elected 24 years ago, a rebel group formed by Joseph Kony gained support from the northern Ugandans, who did not stand behind the president. The rebel group was beginning to deteriorate when Kony decided to turn on his own people. His rebels began abducting children and forcing them into soldiership. The country was not safe for many, namely Uganda’s children, Dingman said.
Invisible Children has many goals within its organization to combat the war at hand including rebuilding schools and promoting peace talks.
“Peace talks are dwindling because Kony refuses to sign. If more people are aware of the urgency of the situation, then we will be able to put more pressure on talks of peace,” Dingman said. “We must demand, this has to stop.”
The first movie was about the displaced children, known as “night commuters,” who evade the wrath of Kony’s rebels. The goal of this second documentary was to have “one face to help represent the millions,” the film proclaimed. Titled “GO: How Far Would You?” the documentary follows a group of students who travel to Uganda to help with the programs that were started by Invisible Children.
The movie focuses on three particular students who find youth who have faced unthinkable circumstances and are now advocating in Washington for the 1.5 million Ugandans living in displacement camps, advocating to help them return to their homes in Northern Uganda and out of the camps.
“This girl, so much like me, had led a completely different life,” one of the students in the film said about her experience. “I’ve been given a responsibility to give back.”
Maggie McDonald, sophomore in social work and president of the Invisible Children Club at USU, said that she felt the same way.
“It’s really inspiring to see people my age and even younger than me raising money for this cause and gives us hope that we can too,” McDonald said.
As far as raising money for the organization, the club at USU has been very successful, McDonald said. The club has been sharing the story of the Invisible Children in various classes on campus and passing around a jar for people to donate money to and have received much more than they expected, McDonald said.
The money goes directly to the programs that Invisible Children has created in Uganda and partnering programs in the United States and Europe, Dingman said.
“Ninety percent of the donations go to the programs and 10 percent goes to administrative costs, which we try to keep at a minimum. Considering that most other non-profit organizations stand with 30 percent going to overhead, it’s a phenomenal ratio,” Dingman said.
Dingman said that she and Trigg go on tour to promote the organization and continue working in San Diego for a time at the Invisible Children office without any compensation.
“We’d rather have the money go to other causes that need it rather than our own pockets,” Dingman said.
After the movie on Wednesday, the organization was collecting donations and selling merchandise. One of the main donations that they were seeking for was the bracelet campaign, which sells bracelets made in Uganda. The profits of 40 bracelets can put one child in Uganda through school.
“Half of the profits from the bracelet campaign go to Gulu High School in Uganda and the other half goes to the workers who make them,” McDonald said. The bracelets are made out of reeds and recycled wire and packaged in the United States. The donors receive a bracelet and a DVD about a child in Uganda.
Trigg said they are actively fighting for human rights behind the banner of “Where you live shouldn’t determine if you live.”
–beck.turner@aggiemail.usu.edu