thedailywhat:

Heartwarming Human Interest Story of the Day: Veterans in Lowell, Mass., descended on a local Iraqi restaurant this week to show their support for the establishment in the aftermath of what they believed was a hate crime.

A New Hampshire man who has since confessed threw a 20-pound rock through the window of Babylon, a family-owned restaurant in Mill City.  

Lowell police Superintendent Kenneth Lavallee told the Lowell Sun the man claimed his crime was not motivated by hatred, and in fact didn’t know the business was run by Iraqis.

Still, veterans with Veterans for Peace came out en masse to stand in solidarity with the family.

“This solidarity gives us the courage to stand,” said owner Leyla Al-Zubaydi. “There is no more fear in my heart because there are such nice people behind us.”

[lowellsun / thanks amanda!]