Kyle Rittenhouse

News | Nithya Kunta & Frank Yang | Nov 21st, 2021.

In August last year, teenager Kyle Rittenhouse killed Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz, 27, during street protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a separate issue on police brutality. On November 19, Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all charges against him.

Rittenhouse testified that he acted in self-defense, as Rosenbaum, unarmed, had thrown a plastic bag at him and chased him. (Wisconsin law allows the use of deadly force only “if necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm.”) Prosecutors argued that Rittenhouse provoked Rosenbaum by pointing his rifle at someone, causing Rosenbaum to chase after him and thus proving that Rittenhouse’s self-defense claims were untrue. Rittenhouse was also charged with first-degree intentional homicide of Huber, the most serious charge he faced. Huber had swung his skateboard at Rittenhouse after Rosenbaum was shot, leading Rittenhouse to fire on Huber.

As a trained paramedic, Grosskreutz was out with medical supplies and a handgun at the protests. He approached Rittenhouse armed in an attempt to diffuse the situation, when Rittenhouse shot Grosskreutz in the arm.

The court’s decision has sparked a national debate over several related issues, not limited to vigilantism, gun rights, self-defense, and most notably, white privilege. In cities, including Brooklyn, Chicago, and Columbus, protesters have gathered to oppose the verdict. Rittenhouse’s actions have only further polarized the two political parties, as many right-wing groups have called him a patriot and a “good guy with a gun” while liberals have denounced his actions as a failure of justice. Moreover, many argue that this case is simply more evidence that white men in America are not held accountable for their actions.

Despite this trial bringing up video games, and a prosecutor pointing a rifle at the judge, many similar and comparable court cases to Rittenhouse’s have ended in results vastly different than that of Rittenhouse. The main criticism against this is the analysis that those found guilty are usually of non-white descent, while those acquitted are usually of white descent: a concept which furthers white supremacy and privilege.