On Tuesday, Sept. 20, Generation4Change hosted a viewing of the documentary “Tony” with Invisible Children, the Uganda-aid organization.
In the West Forum, where the documentary was being shown, the room filled in slowly with a diverse group of individuals; ranging in everything from race to gender to traditions.
Soon Kimberly Dotts, an Invisible Children volunteer, started the film by rolling down a large white canvas and clicking play on the computer.
The entire film is narrated by Laren Poole, co-founder of Invisible Children and a strong supporter for peace in Uganda.
It begins with his journey to the African country of Uganda with a group of friends, and their fateful meeting with a boy named Tony.
Unlike the other children who ran away from their village homes to find safety in the city streets of Uganda, Tony was very charismatic and witty. He was a real character who enjoyed rap, rap artists and the ladies.
The documentary concentrates around Tony, through the death of his mother, his life during school, his travel to the United States and the loss of his close friend, Nate Henn.
What this movie and Invisible Children hope to convey is that we are turning a blind eye to the problems in other countries.
The reason children are sent from their homes is because the fear they will be kidnapped and forced to serve as soldiers of the Lord’s Resistance Army.
The Invisible Children organization’s goal is remove Joseph Kony, leader of the LRA, so that Uganda no longer has to live in the devastating Civil War and wayward children can become dependent by receiving an education. At the end of the film, a man named Roy Arnold Komakech from Uganda spoke in front of the sorrowful audience and told his tale of survival in Uganda.
For more information on the video or the Invisible Children organization, visit http://invisiblechildren.com/. Donations can also be made through the site.