Kony 2012 has become a worldwide phenomenon after going viral in early March, and now has more than 86 million views on YouTube. For the average person, Kony 2012 represented the first time they had hear of Joseph Kony, Invisible Children and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda all of which have been around for nearly a decade. The atrocities being committed by Kony and his Army concerned many, including the members of the Omega Eta Lambda Chapter of NRHH, many of whom asked, “What can we do?”

Realizing that education is key to advocacy, VP of Service Jillian Andrews coordinated this event in conjunction with Southern Arizona Against Slavery (SAAS) to help educate students about the issues concerning Joseph Kony, the LRA, Invisible Children and Human Trafficking.

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In an effort to help educate residents on issues of human trafficking all over the world and to understand the various controversies surrounding the Kony 2012 campaign, NRHH collaborated with Southern Arizona Against Slavery (SAAS) to host this event. SAAS is a local non-profit dedicated to educating various groups in Tucson about the global human trafficking crisis, including forced labor and child soldiers. NRHH responded to the desires of residents to host an event about child soldiers after the mass popularity of the Kony 2012 video erupted on campus. This event was a way to address a very relevant issue and draw students into an important cause that is finally receiving the attention it deserves.

During the event, SAAS Co-Founders and UA graduates Andy and Chelsea showed “Tony” one of Invisible Children’s earlier videos. The video detailed how the organization began, what the organization does and the Invisible Children movement. This was the perfect way for students who had seen Kony 2012 but did not know much else about the crisis to learn about the situation in Uganda and about the work that Invisible Children does as a media and education based non-profit.

After the video, Andy and Chelsea helped analyze the Kony 2012 video that had gone viral just weeks earlier and the ensuing controversy around Invisible Children. They then discussed several other Invisible Children initiatives like the LRA warning system, which connects remote villages in an effort to help them communicate when the Lord’s Resistance Army is nearby. SAAS also provided resources like photos, literature, and maps of affected areas to help residents better visualize the crisis. Those in attendance were truly engaged in the conversation, particularly in how they can get involved with the fight against modern day slavery. Andy provided suggestions for organizations that students can join in the community. Students had the chance to ask questions and discuss with Andy and Chelsea, while making their own determination about the Kony controversy and the need to help the children of Uganda.

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Wildcats Against Slavery had two simple goals:

!) Educate students about Joseph Kony, the LRA, Invisible Children and human trafficking.
The primary way in which this goal was achieved was through partnering with SAAS, an organization devoted to combating human trafficking in Arizona and worldwide. The video, “Tony”, did an excellent job at introducing people to Joseph Kony, the LRA, issues surrounding human trafficking in Uganda and the Invisible Children organization. Many of the people in attendance were surprised to learn that aside from advocacy, Invisible Children, actually funds communications projects and provides education to children in Uganda and surrounding areas.

2) Raise money for SAAS by garnering support for DTF (Down to Feed)
Held a few days after Wildcats Against Slavery, DTF was a secondary event in human trafficking education that served to fundraise for SAAS. Since the event required people to cook food using their own time and money, we knew that we needed a reason to draw people into participating in the event. Wildcats Agaisnt Slavery proved to be the perfect starting place by attracting eight people to join our fundraising efforts through DTF.

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On a campus with 600+ clubs and organizations, we often look to each other for support. At times this can lead to isolation from our greater campus community. Partnering with SAAS enabled us to extend beyond the reaches of the University and into the greater Tucson community. This partnership also enabled us to foster a relationship with the organization for the future.

As an educational program, Wildcats Against Slavery also succeeded in educating students about issues pertaining to human trafficking and Invisible Children. Many of those in attendance had heard of the issues before Kony 2012, but never really understood the issues, the organization or the roles of the people involved. But Wildcats Against Slavery helped put all of the pieces to a very complicated puzzle together in order to form a greater picture of how we as college students can work to eliminate human trafficking worldwide

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Going into the program, we weren’t quite sure of what to expect for a variety of reasons including poor advertisement and working with a community organization to plan the event. Although the event had been talked about for a few weeks at RHA General Body Meetings and had a Facebook event, the advertising beyond these mediums had been very minimal. Outside of active community service projects, this was the first time that we had worked directly with a community organization, so it represented a very different programming dynamic than we were accustomed to. But a few minor technological glitches aside, the program could not have been any better.

The video shown by Andy and Chelsea from SAAS did an excellent job at explaining the key players in the LRA, child trafficking in Uganda and the mission and objectives of the Invisible Children foundation. Finally, Andy and Chelsea were great at answering questions posed to them by the students present at the event.

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In today’s technology crazed era, it seems that there is a new issue generating popularity every few months through a viral video on YouTube, trending on Twitter or a Facebook status campaign. This program developed straight out of the aftermath of the Kony 2012 campaign. To adapt this program to another campus or another topic, all that would need to be done is to identify a cause to support and educate others about. Collaborating with another campus club and/or organization that is knowledgeable about the issue is really key to this program in ensuring that students receive factual and accurate information regarding the issue. Collaboration also helps to promote opportunities offered by these organizations to those interested in getting more involved. If you cannot identify a club or organization that deals with the issue you’ve chosen you can always contact a national or international organization in order to assist you in identifying organizations near you that can help assist in educating students.

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