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The Invisible War

You have just done something that more than 250,000 children in Northern Uganda never have: You read the title of this article. Our basic education is something we often take for granted, as we do our necessities.

In a world in which the headlines are shadowed with American death tolls and names of train wreck celebrities, there’s a war being fought in Northern Uganda—an invisible war. I’m not referring to the genocide in Darfur—which you hopefully realize is in a different country, Sudan—but rather another civil war where the soldiers range from 7 to 17.

Twenty years ago, a woman named Alice Lakwena had a vision in which the Holy Spirit spoke to her and ordered her to overthrow the Ugandan government for its cruelty to the people of Northern Uganda. Lakwena’s vision ignited the civil war between the Ugandan government and what is now known as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The goal of the LRA is to do so much damage to Northern Uganda that the government is forced to change the way it treats its citizens.

The primary tactic of the LRA is to kidnap children and raise them to fight. For the LRA, the younger the better, because the children will be raised in an environment where they are taught to murder and kidnap more children. In response to the attacks, the Ugandan government forced nearly 2 million people into Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps to protect the civilians from the LRA.

The camps, however, have done more harm than good. Because they centralize all of the people in one place, those in the camps endure disease, malnutrition and nighttime attacks from the LRA. In addition, many children are forced to commute at night from their homes and schools to sleep on the corners of guarded streets to avoid kidnap and murder.

But there is hope for the children of Northern Uganda. In the spring of 2003, three young American filmmakers traveled to Africa to find a story. They learned about the lives of these children and created a film called Invisible Children. The documentary details the painful lives of young children living in fear of the LRA. After the film received rave reviews, countless viewers asked, “What can I do?” So the nonprofit Invisible Children Inc. was born. The organization focuses primarily on awareness, mobilization and fundraising.

Invisible Children asked the Ugandans what they wanted Americans to do for them. Without hesitation, they asked for proper education. Thus one of the most remarkable campaigns was founded: the “Schools for Schools” program—an initiative designed to encourage youth to actively participate in their changing world. Each American school that participates raises money for rebuilding a partner school. Students can watch online as the money they raise goes systematically into the rebuilding of the school.

To sign up your school, go to http://S4S.invisiblechildren.com. Before you begin fundraising, I encourage you to see the film. My school is working with us, and we have planned a time to show the film to the whole school. Once you’ve seen the film, figure out a course of action and determine how you want to raise money. Remember to be realistic, but always optimistic.

My friends and I are planning a benefit concert. We’re working with some major companies to plan an event that we hope will raise not just funds, but also awareness. As American youth, we have an obligation to make an impact and help the youth in Africa. Together we can bring new hope to the children of Northern Uganda.

For more information about Invisible Children, visit www.invisiblechildren.com.

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