90-year-old man's gesture towards Muslim family at Barnes & Noble wins hearts

A story about kindness and religious tolerance has emerged from an unexpectedinteraction at a Boston-area Barnes & Noble store.

On July 27, Leena Al-Arian shared a Facebook post about the encounter, writing that a man approached her in the store and "conveyed a heartfelt apology for the general anti-Muslim sentiment in our society today."

She goes on to say that "he had tears in his eyes and told me that it must be so hard to turn on the news, that he feels awful about the bigotry my kids might one day experience, and that as a Jewish man whose parents didn't speak any English growing up, he personally understands what it feels like to be rejected and discriminated against."

The woman reports that "he wanted to reassure me that most Americans are decent people who don't hate people like me or believe what they hear on the news."

The man also revealed that he was about to turn 90 and "insisted on buying each of the kids a present as a gift for himself."

Al-Arian calls the story a "modern day chicken soup for the anti-racist soul."