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Kansas Man Who Tried To Save Two Indians From Shooter Says 'There's Too Much Hate'

"Let's take care of each other as humans."
Photo of Ian Grillot, who is recuperating in hospital.
Youtube/KUHospital
Photo of Ian Grillot, who is recuperating in hospital.

When 24-year-old Ian Grillot tried to tackle a man shooting at two Indian men in a Kansas bar, he was not thinking about the victims' ethnicity. The construction worker was trying to take care of a fellow human, but is happy that his action has brought different communities together, he said in a new video released by the Kansas hospital where he is recuperating after he suffered gunshot wounds to his hand and chest.

"It feels awesome honestly, to be able to give people a hope that not everybody hates everybody," he said in a video released by he University of Kansas Health System. "The way everything is happening right now there's so much hate, there's not enough love."

Last Wednesday, Adam W. Purinton, a 51-year-old American Navy veteran, opened fire at two Indian engineers at a Kansas bar, allegedly shouting "get out of my country" at them. While 32-year-old Srinivas Kuchibhotla was killed in the attack, his friend Alok R. Madasani, 32, escaped with injuries. Grillot, who tried to subdue Purinton and was shot in the process, is recovering in hospital.

"Being able to share a little bit of light and happiness in a situation, for caring about somebody apart from your race--which has been such a big thing lately--it's not what it should be about, in my eye," Grillot said from his hospital bed. "Like I said before, we are all humans. Let's take care of each other as humans--not a colour, or a gender, or an ethnicity. It's not about that, it's about humans taking care of one other."

Doctors at the hospital have said that Grillot is stable but has a long road to recovery. You can watch the full video of him speaking below.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.