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A young Latino man is being hailed as a hero who helped saved Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' life.

Daniel Hernandez Jr., 20, a political science student from the University of Arizona, was a new intern in her office. He rushed towards Giffords and the gunshots, held her hand and applied pressure to the wound. He held her head up to keep her from choking on her own blood.

"When I heard gunshots, my first instinct was to head toward the congresswoman to make sure that she was okay," Hernandez said in an interview Sunday with ABC's Christiane Amanpour. "Once I saw that she was down, and there were more than one victim, I went ahead and started doing the limited triage that I could with what I had."

Hernandez also is a member of the City of Tucson Commission on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Issues.

In a state where Latinos and immigrants have faced a barrage of attacks from the anti-immigration law SB1070 to plans to end Mexican-American studies programs, it's good news to see a Latino celebrated for his heroic act.

Can you imagine the outrage had the shooter not been a white male but a Latino immigrant? READ MORE