Ibn Ali Miller, the New Jersey man who became a viral sensation when he stepped in to stop a fight between two teenagers, said that he was only doing what he was raised to do.
“I’m a Muslim. I was raised by Muslim parents. That’s what we were taught in my house, always, growing up,” he told Time of his reasoning behind his decision to step in. “For me, I don’t look at it like I’m a peacemaker. I did what I was supposed to do, what I was raised to do.”
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In the now-viral video, Miller steps between two fighting teenagers and speaks to them about their actions, telling the gathered teens that they should not be bringing this kind of shame to their parents and refusing to leave until the two teens shake hands.
“I just didn’t want those kids to fight. More importantly, I didn’t want one of those kids to lose the fight,” Miller said. “Sometimes when you’re young like that, and you lose a fight in front of your friends and it goes on Facebook, it could hurt you for a long time.”
He then added, “I stepped in just because it was the right thing to do. Those kids didn’t look like predators to me. To me, I saw my own kids. I didn’t see predators.”