The moderator of the talk author Salman Rushdie was to give in upstate New York last Friday, is speaking out.

Henry Reese was also injured in the attack and was sporting a black eye and stitches when he told the BBC his concern is still for Rushdie, who continues to recover from stab wounds he suffered as he was preparing to speak.

Reese is co-founder of City of Asylum.  It offers safety, shelter and support to persecuted writers.  Reese says the attack won’t impede the organization from its primary purpose and adds, he hopes to go back to the Chautauqua Institution and continue the conversation he was going to have.

A man identified as 24-year-old Hadi Matar was arrested after the attack and taken into custody.