Chris Lange, FISM News
Sporadic demonstrations erupted overnight in several states following the Friday acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse faced five counts, including felony murder, for fatally shooting two people and injuring a third during intense, days-long rioting in Kenosha, WI, in August of 2020. A sixth charge of illegal firearm possession was previously thrown out by the judge.
Police in Portland, Ore., declared a riot as protesters smashed doors and windows of city buildings and attempted to breach the Justice Center, threatening to “burn it down.” Cops used loudspeakers to warn demonstrators that they would use force, if necessary, including “pepper spray and impact weapons,” if the crowd did not disperse. City residents were warned of possible delayed response times because “significant resources have been diverted to address this riot.”
Demonstrators carrying signs reading “F— this system” and “Black liberation through socialist revolution” temporarily blocked traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York late Friday. Following the midday acquittal, outgoing NYC mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted that the verdict was “disgusting” and “sends a horrible message to this country.”
Massive crowd of #BlackLivesMatter activists take to the streets of Brooklyn NY in response of the #KyleRittennhouse case and chant " SAY HIS NAME, GEORGE FLOYD " #NYC pic.twitter.com/kla33lV5gm
— Leeroy Johnson (@LeeroyPress) November 20, 2021
Protesters on the west coast assembled in front of a federal building in Oakland, Calif., chanting anti-cop slogans and displaying signs reading “Cops and fascists given license to kill in the USA” and “The whole system is guilty.”
Chicago, Ill., demonstrators reportedly looted several stores, including a GameStop and a Neiman Marcus luxury store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile, while carrying “Kyle will kill again” and “Reject racist vigilante terror” signs.
Protesters will be marching soon. #Chicago #KyleRittenhouse
— Tyler LaRiviere (@TylerLaRiviere) November 20, 2021
Protesters in Denver, Colo., marched down city streets.
DENVER: Demonstrators Marching In Protest Of Rittenhouse Verdict
— HeadlineHunter! 🚨 Alerts (@freehumanity911) November 20, 2021
Black Lives matter tweeted “Reminder: the system is working exactly as it is meant to. The system was always meant to protect and uphold white supremacy” following the verdict. In another tweet, the group referred to Rittenhouse as “the little racist/terrorist.”
Ahead of Friday’s verdict, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) placed 500 National Guard members on standby in Kenosha in anticipation of massive rioting over the verdict. Tensions flared among demonstrators following the acquittal, though no major clashes or unrest have been reported.
Progressive activists and several television pundits have relentlessly pushed an unfounded narrative that the Rittenhouse self-defense trial was about race, despite the fact that the three men shot were white. President Biden accused Rittenhouse of being part of a “militia” and linked him to “white supremacy” during a 2020 interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper. Following yesterday’s verdict, Biden ducked questions from reporters about his previous statement, instead telling them, “I stand by what the jury has concluded.” He later issued a statement that read, “I urge everyone to express their views peacefully, consistent with the rule of law,” adding, “Violence and destruction of property have no place in our democracy.”
A jury of five men and seven women deliberated for approximately 26 hours over the course of four days, ultimately finding Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty. The charges levied against him stemmed from the 2020 deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber and the injury of Gaige Grosskreutz, when Rittenhouse shot them during violent riots in Kenosha following the shooting of a black sexual assault suspect by a white police officer. Defense counsel for Rittenhouse, then 17, said he acted in self defense. The case has further amplified the growing polarization of Americans over sociopolitical issues.