Just wanted to do my part to help inform people about this… There are further links and action steps at the end of the article.
“On April 29th, thousands of people across the country will take a new approach to ending a devastating war abroad – they’ll take it lying down. Invisible Children Inc., an organization committed to ending the war in Northern Uganda where children are forced to fight as soldiers, has organized a Global Night Commute in 136 cities across the country.
On this night, thousands will commute to their cities’ designated location and sleep outside on behalf of the invisible children of Northern Uganda. This event is a plea to the U.S. government to help put an end to this horrific 20-year-long war.
“It’s a moral outrage to see thousands of children that have been abducted, that have been maltreated. They are going through the most horrendous torture by the rebel movement and that same group is now being neglected by the whole international community,” said Jan Egeland, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. “I cannot find any other part of the world having an emergency on the scale of Uganda with so little international attention.”
The event promises a wide variety of people from celebrities and legislators to activists and authors. Actress Kristen Bell, from the hit show “Veronica Mars” heard about Invisible Children through co-star Ryan Hansen.
“Invisible Children is not only an inspiring movement, but it has forced me to act,” said Kristen Bell. “On April 29th you’ll find me in the streets Night Commuting.”
The start of Invisible Children came in 2003 when three naive filmmakers, from Southern California, flew to Africa in search of a story that would change the world. What they found was a situation in Northern Uganda that disgusted and inspired them. They documented their findings of a 20-year-long war where children are the weapons, and the victims. The result was a film called, “Invisible Children: Rough Cut.” After seeing the impact of their film worldwide, they formed the non-profit Invisible Children Inc.
The organization is dedicated to ending the war in Northern Uganda where children are abducted and forced to fight with the rebel army as child soldiers. For fear of being hunted by the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army), these children commute on foot every night to find safe places to sleep in their town centers. To date, more than 30,000 children have been abducted and forced into war. That’s why Invisible Children is calling on the world to take a stand.
“The Global Night Commute is an opportunity for Americans to rally with one voice,” said Jason Russell, one of the filmmakers and founders of Invisible Children. “We are asking people to lie down and close their eyes with us for one night, so that we can open the world’s eyes to this unseen war.”
As a media-based company, the filmmakers will create a music video ‘mocumentary’ to encourage people to attend the Global Night Commute. This video will be sent out via Pod cast, a couple weeks before the event. With this video, the filmmakers are pushing the envelope on how aid is perceived in the world. They are grabbing the attention of a younger generation with media that is both funny and touching. This music video is the biggest production to date for the non-profit.
About Invisible Children Inc.
Invisible Children Inc., established in 2004, is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing financial resources to invisible children by documenting their true, untold stories in a creative and relevant way, resulting in positive change. Invisible Children Inc. was formed after the release of the film “Invisible Children: Rough Cut”, which documents a war in Northern Uganda in which children are abducted by a rebel army and forced to fight as child soldiers. The filmmakers for “Invisible Children: Rough Cut”, Jason Russell, Bobby Bailey and Laren Poole, are also the founders of Invisible Children Inc. Currently Invisible Children Inc. employs over 150 people in the war-torn area of Northern Uganda and is putting 300 kids through school, with plans to see that number grow into the thousands. The organization is based in San Diego, California.”
For more information about the Invisible Children film and project click here .
For further information about Uganda and easy action steps you can take visit World Vision’s site here
Another world is possible.