Rahul Dubey, who has been living in Washington DC for the last 17 years, accommodated the large number of people in his house with some adjusting on the couch and some finding space in the rooms.
Rahul Dubey, an Indian-American, saved over 70 demonstrators in Washington DC from the clutches of the police, who had reportedly been using pepper spray on protesters. He has now been hailed as a hero for his action, US media reports suggest.
According to NPR, Dubey invited over 70 protesters to spend the night at his home after police started using helicopters and flash-bang munitions to crackdown on anyone violating the 7 pm curfew.
"They unleashed sheer hell on peaceful protesters right outside my stoop," Dubey told NPR. "I don't know, I just flung the door open. And I just kept yelling, 'Come in. Get in the house, get in the house'," he added.
Dubey said he could "literally" hear "skulls being cracked" and described the entire scene as a pandemonium.
"It was a full escalator, is what it felt like — just pouring into the house. I was screaming, 'Downstairs! Outside! There's a backyard! Upstairs! There's bedrooms!'" he said.
Dubey, who has been living in Washington DC for the last 17 years, accommodated the large number of people in his house with some adjusting on the couch, some finding space in the rooms, while some were gratified to get rest even on the ledges of the bathtub.
"There's about 75 people in my house. Some have got couch space. There's a family, a mother and daughter here, that I gave my son's room to so they get some peace and quiet. Yeah, even the ledges of the bathtub, and no one's bitching. They're happy-no, they're not happy. They're safe. They're cheering," Dubey told Esquire magazine.
"Rahul saved lives last night," one Black Lives Matter activist wrote on Twitter. "He ended this with an inspirational speech about not giving up and keeping up the peaceful fight. What a guy. Thank you Rahul."
"I don't think there was even a choice in what I did, to be honest. The crowd just came racing through like a tornado... We had to keep the door open and just kept grabbing people and pulling them in. It's the same that you would if it's a storm, and you would have let anyone into your home, I know that," he told NBC News.
He said when the police line had finally passed his house, that's when the people stopped pouring in. "And I was able to shut the door and lock it. People were pouring milk on their faces, and water was being flung around. I went downstairs to get water for people. People were coughing," he told Esquire.
(With inputs from PTI)
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