I feel like after writing my last post, I should add a couple of things. First of all, in the same way that only a small portion of Americans were involved in the production of "The Innocence of Muslims", I recognize that only a small portion of Indonesians have been involved in the violent protests in response to it. As a whole, Indonesia remains the most peaceful Muslim nation.
Most of the protests and riots have been in major cities far, far away. The only incident I have heard of in Central Java took place over the weekend when protesters stormed KFC and McDonalds in Solo (an hour from my house), forcing them to close. They are trying to demand a boycott of American goods.
That being said, if I'm being 100% honest, I don't feel entirely safe. We are hosting a few events at our school this week that are open to the public, and that makes me a little nervous. I have been receiving emails from the US Embassy multiple times per day keeping me updated on the situation as well as from school officials reminding us to be vigilant and cautious. I've also had Indonesian friends SMSing me throughout the week asking how I'm doing and reminding me to be careful and stay close to home for awhile. Tonight was the first time I've left my neighborhood this week - I went to Bible study across town. And it was business as usual, not that I was expecting it not to be. Double negative - see what I did there?
I talked to one of the guards about it last night, and he told me not to worry about anything because he is here to protect me. Haha... My hero.
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