"Safety's just danger, out of place." - Harry Connick, Jr.

This post started out as an email, so that I could keep this to a less public forum, but I decided to go ahead and post it here. That being said, please be mindful that any comments you post are on a public forum. This blog is open to anyone who stumbles upon it.

Despite the anti-American protests happening across the Middle East, including some in Palestine, most of the protests within Nablus have been about the cost of living and the transit strike here. In Jerusalem and in Gaza there have been anti-American protests, as well as attempts to riot at the US consulate, which were stopped by police and the military. There has been at least one incident of an American flag being burned here in Nablus in the Old City, which is in a different area of Nablus. As a precaution, we are all laying low in the meantime. We aren't changing our schedules at all in terms of teaching classes, but we are sticking in the building that we live and work in at least for this week, in hopes that any anti-American protests will be eased in the week to come. Luckily I'll be starting teaching the young kids and moms tomorrow, so I will be plenty busy. For more info on the protests in Nablus and in Palestine in general, check out the embedded links in this paragraph. I'll keep you posted of any changes, and just keep in mind that we are acting with an abundance of caution. 

While a couple of days old with some outdated numbers, I think the message here still stands.,
And it's a pretty powerful one.

And on an equally important note, keep in mind that even if there are a few hundred people protesting in every Muslim country in the world, and a smaller percentage yet that is protesting violently, that adds up to less than one percent of the total Muslim population. So while these protesters may be anti-American, they make up only a small fraction of the Muslim community at large. Everybody who I have met has been very helpful as far as asking about whether I feel safe here, trying to make my stay more comfortable and secure, etc. So please don't walk away from this week feeling like there is this strong overwhelming sense of hatred toward Americans here-- there's not. There is a lot of anger, but it is directed at the maker of a movie that people find offensive, it is directed at US foreign policies and it is also directed at people who are taking innocent lives in the name of their religion. So while I'm not naive about the situation and we are being careful, I also don't want people in America to walk away from this last week with an unrealistic and biased vision of the Middle East. 

And for whatever it's worth, to any Muslims who may be reading this, I am sorry. The views of that man and that video are not representative of Americans views on Islam.