from prison in 2002, saying the attacks were revenge: "Here sits the Arab Slayer. For what he did, we should make him our mayor," he wrote. "Patriotic, yes indeed, a true American, a special breed." Bhuiyan was left with no money and had to go deeply in debt to restore his vision, "I had to go through several surgeries and finally the doctor could save the eye, but the vision is gone, and I'm still carrying more than 35 pellets on the right side of my face," he says. "Once I touch my face, my skull, I can feel it's all bumpy. It took several years to go through all these painful surgeries one after another one." Despite these hardships, Bhuiyan forgave Stroman and took up the cause of preventing his execution. Stroman would go on to repudiate his white supremacist beliefs. In an interview with the New York Times, he wrote: "I have The Islamic Community Joining in [my legal defence]...Spearheaded by one Very Remarkable man Named Rais Bhuiyan, Who is a Survivor of My Hate. His deep Islamic Beliefs Have gave him the strength to Forgive the Un-forgiveable ... that is truly Inspiring to me, and should be an Example for us all. The Hate, has to stop, we are all in this world together." They reconciled before Stroman's death. Hours before Stroman's execution, Bhuiyan spoke with Stroman, over the phone, for the first time since the shooting. "I forgive you and I do not hate you," he said. Stroman responded, "Thank you from my heart! I love you, bro. ... You touched my heart. I would have never expected this." Bhuiyan replied: "You touched mine, too." Stroman was executed on July 20, 2011. Earlier that day, Bhuiyan's lawyers had lost a final appeal in federal court to stay Stroman's execution. See also Murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi An Eye for an Eye (2016 documentary about the relationship between Stroman and Bhuiyan) References Further reading Giridharadas, Anand. The True American: Murder and Mercy in Texas. W.W. Norton and Company, 2014. 1973 births Living people Date of birth missing (living people) American shooting survivors American anti–death penalty activists Bangladesh Air Force personnel Bangladeshi emigrants to the United States Bangladeshi Muslims American Muslims