Last week I had a nice break from my internship- due to a worker’s strike, school at Christel House was cancelled for the day, so myself and fellow Christel House internees were left to do as we pleased. In the afternoon I headed over to the flat, as I rarely get to do so. We gathered around a computer screen as facebook blew up with notifications about Kony 2012. We were overwhelmed – and instantly downloaded and watched the video. The video won us over, we were inspired and amazed. It urged us to make Joseph Kony’s name known to everyone – to let our leaders know we wanted a military presence in Uganda to end this supposed tragedy. I, personally, was completely inspired by the video and wanted to learn more and do everything I could to help these people. I immediately sent it to my parents; two adults who I thought could do something. Soon after, however, Kony 2012 began to be seriously questioned. All over media sites like reddit and facebook people were sharing their opinions about Kony 2012. At first I wanted to defend this movement and myself. I wanted to believe it was innocent, and that their goals were innocent. This soon faded and curiosity took over. I wanted to know more about the truth of Kony 2012. Now, after speaking to many of my housemates and doing some research, I find that this project is not so innocent. I am frightened of how quickly I came to support the decision to move troops into a foreign country. This whole situation seemed familiar, and suddenly connections were being made. After 9/11, we took one day as a country to decide we were going to war. We wanted to believe we were doing it for the right reasons. To get revenge, to ensure justice was seen. Now a decade has passed and we see we moved far too quickly. We did not question. We did not take our time. We acted. We listened, assumed, and made decisions that have cost many their lives.
I think the most important thing I have learned thus far in Cape Town has been to question things critically. My friends here have showed me how important it is to pay attention to where your information is coming from. Never have I been so shocked and frightened to how manipulated we have been as people of America. Our intentions are good, but we have lost the ability to think for ourselves. It is easy to see – of course we would love to have beliefs. We would love to trust the leaders of our country, our moms and dads. But we put so much in danger by not questioning. If I had not been curious enough or open enough to listen to my peers here in Cape Town I would not have realized the truth of Kony 2012. Even if it is NOT the truth (as there is not concrete truth) it is extremely important for me to consider both sides. To never accept one argument without at least looking critically at the other. I do not blame any one, I think we all would like to believe people have good intentions. But I need to notice these things. It is unfortunate to think that our government does not act in the interest of the people, but it is what is proving to be true. I feel as though I can see this situation in Cape Town. It would not be a surprise to me if the apartheid came about due to similar circumstances. People receiving information about blacks or coloreds and trusting instead of questioning. We can trace this through out time, in slavery in the U.S. We believed the thoughts that whites were above African Americans. Perhaps if a large group of people had questioned this thought, it could have been reversed.
On a smaller scale, we encounter the importance of critical questioning in our own lives- on a personal level. We let our egos take over – whether they be fear or self doubt or negativity. We believe this part of ourselves, and it dictates what we say and do. We do not spend enough time observing. When we sit with ourselves, we can see where the dysfunction arises. We can trace where our negative thoughts and tendencies come from – and there for chose whether to believe them or not. I think if we did this on a smaller scale in our selves, things like the manipulation of the American people would not happen on the bigger scale. We are often sleep walking through life. We are not awake, and often we are not paying attention to why we feel and act the way we do. It starts with self-observation. When you truly know and understand yourself, you can respond to life – rather than react. If we can do this in our world, we can put off acting out of impulse. The consequences of our actions will be included in our plans.
The human species is not a perfect one – good and bad exists within all of us. But we must take the responsibility to observe these parts of ourselves, and understand ourselves. We are all responsible for our own inner environment, and when we critically question and understand it – we will create a better environment in this world.
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