Hashtags: Then & Now

Here we resurrect the dead hashtags to see "Where they are now?" Follow my Twitter for updates! https://twitter.com/WheredTheyGo

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(Top) Some Abercrombie & Fitch models protest during their lunch break.

(Middle)  Guy Fawkes wanders around Wall street wondering how he got himself involved.

(Bottom) A ginger looks on shamefully after he tapes the last of his college graduation present onto his mouth.

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#OccupyWallStreet

We all knew it would have to come eventually. According to some polls they are less likable than the Tea Party movement and only slightly more popular than Donald Trumps toupee. And while that poll may seem to show that they’re not doing well, they have in fact spawned protests in 951 cities since 2011. It began in the middle of the worldwide recession during September of 2011 to show the public frustrations of the alarming economic disparities that plagued, not only the U.S. but the world. Their slogan “We are the 99%” was something of pure PR brilliance. That and the use of Guy Fawkes masks to symbolize solidarity and anti-government has been quite a phenomenon until you find out Time Warner owns the rights to the image and profits every time the protesters buy it.

Occupy has helped stop economic disparity by not moving. Yes, Occupy does their best protests when they’re in one spot being completely still. It could happen literally anywhere. It once happened at a Starbucks in Turkey so beware public, it could be your coffee shop one day. Occupy protests have been almost entirely dissolved but have evolved into sub groups fighting more specific issues, such as “Strike Debt” where they bought out $4 million of student loans and forgave them.

#Occupy was popular until 2013 then it began to fade out. Now it’s 2015 and they movement is essentially gone. They’re website is still active and serves as a newsletter for recent injustices. There are even live stream political radios titled “GlobalRevolution” and “OccupySFV” that still have about 15 viewers left watching them. But we ask ourselves if it worked and it’s hard to see how it did. Is it a success based off the amount of coverage it got, or because it became a part of pop culture, or because there was any change. The 1% of the U.S. owned 25% of the whole U.S. income and now it has gone down some percentages, but nothing convincing enough. At this point Occupy has mostly dissolved except for a few NYU students who were too high to notice anyone leave and are currently sitting in Union Square.

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Jason Russell, explaining something extremely profound to a group of young underprivileged Peruvians during a retreat with GQ Magazine.

JASON RUSSELL

Age: 36

First Seen: On Youtube explaining some really depressing shit to his five year old son who took it all pretty well.

Second Time Seen: Running around San Diego naked and masturbating to vent his frustration, making Brittany Spears look like a normal person in comparison.

Last Seen: Lounging in the Invisible Children  L.A. office building watching their funds slowly hit zero like it’s a doomsday clock.

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Joseph Kony Pensively looking off Camera.

JOSEPH KONY

Age: 53 (?)

What He Thinks He Does: Protects God's will and Testament by freeing children from their homes to fight in his holy army.

What He Actually Does: He's basically Peter Pan if Peter Pan was a psychopath kidnapping children to have them fight in his child army in a far away land.. Oh shit. Nope. Yeah. He is actually exactly like Peter Pan. Except in real life.

Last Seen: So long ago no one can remember.

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#Kony2012: Catching Up With The Cast

Meet Joseph Kony & Jason Russell!

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#Kony2012: Where is it now?

Most people remember #Kony2012 as that video by that guy who masturbated in public and managed to oversimplified the larger issue at hand while enamoring everyone else who didn't think twice about it. The video managed 100 million views in five days and was a cultural phenomenon that swept the twittesphere into a frenzy that is so ubiquitous in 2015 that we often forget what to call this; Hashtag activism. It is often criticized for its short term memory, which is really why I am here. To take a look at #Kony2012 and see “Where are they now?”.

Welcome to the world of #Kony2015. It's not too different. Obama is still president and people still aren't sure where the fuck Joseph Kony is or who the fuck he is, for that matter. But it's not all doom and gloom in the world of #Kony2015, I mean things have changed. Invisible Children aka Public Masturbation guy aka #Kony2012 has raised $32 million since the video released, and has helped bring attention to the terrible crimes commited by Kony. While the video and the concept are far from infallible, the issue truly brought attention to the issue of Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army, which consists of children that he kidnaps from villages and indoctrinates into killers. One of the responses to the video has been the increase in budget and troops by President Obama to help searching for Kony in the spring of 2014. This January there was an enormous breakthrough when one of Joseph Kony's senior aides surrendered, leaving hope for the capture of Kony.

#Kony2012 was a revelation when it first came out. Everyone thought, “Finally, social media is living up to its potential.” And just when those 100 million viewers were feeling warm and fuzzy inside the director had a mental breakdown, and they were under constant criticism about their who their funding came from and the oversimplification of an extremely complex issue that has been going on for thirty years. But now, three years later, as the dwindling funding for Invisible Children trickles away and the issue is still alive, there seems to be sympathy for the charity that's heading to pasture.