Tuesday, April 19, 2011

i'm going silent.

for 25 hours, i won't be speaking. because sometimes i speak too much.

i was recently introduced to a new "word" - slacktivism: when one says they care and are loud about a cause but don't actually do anything to help.

i'm guilty of this.

after all, the word activism begins with three letters: act. by definition, it requires action.

in this information age, one has to be rather ignorant to not be aware of the injustices happening in the world. the time for awareness is over. it's time for action.

for 25 years, the lords resistance army has been committing terrible atrocities against innocent people in central africa. after the lra was driven out of northern uganda in 2005, they have been occupying some of the most remote and isolated territories in the entire region. they are attacking communities that have virtually no way to communicate to the outside world. the cries of the victims go silent.

and so, starting at 7pm on april 24th, i along with thousands of others, join these victims in silence. for 25 hours i will not speak. we will all gather together, and at 8pm on april 25th, we will break the silence. and then we will act. we will write to congress to fight for peace. we can bring an end to this war.

this is in partnership with invisible children, which is doing amazing things to help protect the citizens of central africa. here is a some insider info from a friend of mine who is working directly with ic:

"when the peace talks between ugandan government and lra failed in 2008, the lra fled uganda. currently there is peace in northern uganda. however, they have now moved into the congo, sudan, and car. they are attacking villages almost daily because they have no funding. they need to attack to get food, supplies, etc. we are building 12 radio towers in these three countries. they will send out a broadcast twice a day to all of the villages saying where the lra has been, where they are heading, who needs help or protection, etc. also, it will broadcast to the lra. many members of the lra are afraid to come out of the bush because they fear being persecuted or being killed by their home villages for the crimes they were forced to commit. we are broadcasting ways for them to safely come out."

this is huge. and they need our help. would you consider donating even $1 or $5? you can donate directly to invisible children here:

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