Sunday, July 11- The Kampala Bombings

On Sunday, July 11, two places were bombed in Kampala, the capitol of Uganda. It was during the World Cup 2010 finals, Spain and the Netherlands. Several of us went to Kope Café in Gulu to watch the game. I stayed through the 90 minute regulation, but decided not to watch the overtime as it was pretty late already, and I had school the next day.
I woke up to Lindsey’s phone ringing the next morning. It was her mother calling, but I still did not know what had happened. Needless to say, I found out pretty quickly, but I did not have all of the information at that point.
Kampala is in the southern part of Uganda, and Gulu is about a six-hour ride north, so we were not in any immediate danger. There were many rumors coming out of Kampala: mzungus were the target, Ethiopians were the target, not all of the bombs went off, etc. It was later in the day that we found out about Nate, one of the IC roadies, who had arrived to Uganda early. He was at the rugby venue, watching with some friends, and he was killed in the explosion. I think that information is what the United States focused on, although I have not had the opportunity to really look at American news feeds.
I felt pretty secure in the fact that my family and friends did not know about it because our local news is pretty terrible, and let’s be honest, few people really are concerned about what occurs in African countries. However, when I called my parents around 2:00 pm Ugandan time (7:00 am EST), they were a little frantic. I assured them that I was safe and pretty far from Kampala. To be honest, I didn’t understand why my parents (as well as others’ family members) were worried. Upon reflection, I realize that it is because in their eyes, I was so close to the bombings. I was only 6 hours away as opposed to half a continent and an enormous ocean. And that is when the impact of the bombings hit me. Nate had come to Uganda because of his belief in Invisible Children and his connection to his Ugandan friends here. I am the same; our only difference is that he was watching the soccer match with friends in Kampala and I was watching it with friends in Gulu.
IC has taken measures to assure our safety while in country, as well as our safe departure coming up. They are working with the American Embassy, and I am certain that everything will be fine. However, it has reminded me of two things: 1) I am so fortunate to live in the US. I feel that terrorism can happen anywhere (as it has), but I also feel that for the most part, Americans have a high level of tolerance of others. If we don’t understand someone or something, we work until we do understand. And our first response is not violent. I am not sure I can say that about other countries, especially those that have such a violent past as in Africa. And 2) Life is short and can end at any minute. I am pledging to myself that I will work to appreciate every day, so at the end of my life, I can look back and smile at the amazing people I encountered and the unforgettable experiences.