In the viral video that has been viewed by over 100 million people, the project directors at Invisible Children urged everyone to take part in Cover the Night on April 20: an event in which everyone would take to the streets and cover their town with Kony 2012 posters and literature.
The minds behind Invisible Children’s project and endeavor strongly believe in using “film, creativity, and social action to end the use of child soldiers in Joseph Kony’s rebel war.”
Invisible Children put together Action Kits available for sale on their website to provide participants with supplies for the night. These kits included information cards, posters, and a bracelet with a serial number to keep track of posters and information.
The video reached more than 200 times its targeted audience, gaining over 100 million views. From its goal of reaching 500,000 viewers within the year, it was not anticipated that the video would have gained such popularity in such a short amount of time.
Cover the Night was created to raise awareness, but following the film’s explosive debut, the original CTN plan would have been redundant.
Invisible Children took this is as an opportunity to speak to all of the people that have been captivated by the Kony 2012 movement and encourage them to go out and do something positive for their community.
The organization created several “how to” videos, providing people with ideas and ways to go about serving their community.
Examples ranged from repainting recreation center buildings and elementary school play structures to doing trash clean-ups at local parks and beaches. After urging their supporters to go out and do something positive for their area, Invisible Children asked participants to send in photos of their community projects in addition to their Cover The Night images.
Out of the thousands they received, several have been selected to be featured on IC’s website, blog, and Instagram feed. The night was extremely successful, as many businesses donated walls to be transformed into beautiful murals displaying images of peace.