Tolerance is the strongest weapon to use use against hate.
This is demonstrated by Qasim Rashid, a Democrat running for Congress in Virginia.
Rashid got very upset after receiving ‘deeply hurtful’ tweets from Oscar Dillon, 66, claiming that Islam promoted rapes and beheading.
Instead of lashing out at the bigotry, he helped pay Dillon’s medical bills, as he later found out that Dillon had launched a GoFundMe page for his wife who suffers a life-threatening pulmonary embolism.
Rashid’s good deed touched Dillon deeply.
The politician tweeted: ‘Last week a Conservative constituent sent me deeply hurtful anti-Muslim tweets.
“I replied by donating to his GoFundMe to help cover his crushing medical debt
“He wrote me a thoughtful & compassionate apology & asked me to visit him
“Today I met my new friend Oz #WinTheHearts.”
Rashid, originally from Pakistan, also included a photo of himself with Dillon.
Rashid’s response helped boost fund-raising for Dillon’s GoFundMe page, with many of those contributing towards its $26,000 goal saying they’d been inspired by the politician’s grace.
“What this has done is reopen my eyes. 9/11 was a tragic time for me and my family,” Dillon told NBC News
“This has reopened my eyes to pre-9/11, where I would look at each individual as a person.
“He has shown me that there is good in all walks of life.”