The Kyle Rittenhouse Trial Essay Example

The Kyle Rittenhouse Trial was a recent event in which Rittenhouse was tried for shooting three individuals at a protest and faced multiple felonies. This trial was largely broadcasted due to increased media outlets writing about the story and portraying it as if the case was largely involved within the realm of social justice when it was not. Rittenhouse was described by some in the media as a racist and also presumed to have arrived in Kenosha at a BLM protest to create chaos. Kyle’s trial was primarily a self-defense case, BLM and Antifa supporters, attacked Rittenhouse during a Jacob Blake protest and three white individuals were shot. Rittenhouse’s core relation to the social justice argument lies in him going to the protest. He was simply at the protest to clean graffiti, give first aid, and put out fires, as well as protect some of his friend’s local businesses. Still, outlets such as CNN, MSNBC, and many Democratic politicians disapproved of Rittenhouse and his ability to use self-defense. They influenced crowds by creating headlines and by having discussions about the trial, making it seem like it was a matter of social justice--news media used the idea that the Rittenhouse case represented a critical social justice moment as a means to draw the attention of viewers.

Media outlets then continued to promote the trial, creating more and more misinformation and slander towards Rittenhouse, to make it seem like it was a political argument, rather than a 17-year-old on trial for self-defense. After Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all charges, media outlets have received backlash and criticism for their deception before and after the trial. To this day, many still believe that Rittenhouse is racist and a white supremacist due to misuse of influence from major media outlets. Some have speculated that this event could be similar or on a larger scale than Nick Sandmann, who sued media outlets for over 800 million dollars for defamation. The Kyle Rittenhouse trial caused public outrage due to the medias role in influencing the public to believe the trial was a matter of social justice, and proceeded to place a negative light on social justice movements through misinformation and defamation of Kyle Rittenhouse.

Rittenhouse’s intentions that night were clear through photos and videos seen throughout the night. Firstly, there is a video from Rittenhouse, explaining his need for a rifle and the reasons for his outing that night. He had previous training in EMT, joined a cadet program with both the Grayslake Police Department and the Antioch Fire Department. Footage and witness testimonies show that Rittenhouse was indeed stopping fires as well as cleaning graffiti the night of, and also participated in two hours of graffiti cleaning with family and friends earlier in the day of the shooting. The three victims involved in the Kenosha shooting were deceased Joesph Rosenbaum, 36, deceased Anthony Huber, 26, and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz, 27. Reports and video evidence show that this was hardly a BLM protest; instead, this was a violent riot against police brutality that was filled with Antifa and other people who came to cause harm and destruction by setting fires and breaking into stores and cars.

This aggression and overall sense of lawlessness is prominent in Rosenbaum, as Rittenhouse recalls Rosenbaum, who screamed, “If I catch any of you f*ckers alone I will f*cking kill you” as well as “I’m going to cut your f*cking hearts out and kill you n*ggers” (NBC News). Kyle also noted that “I saw [Rosenbaum] tip that trailer over and that portapotty... and I believe he tried to start the portapotty on fire” (NBC News). Clearly, Rosenbaum was up to no good that night including witnesses stating he was physically aggressive. After Rittenhouse yelled “friendly” three times, Rosenbaum continued to chase down Rittenhouse and reach for his gun, causing Rittenhouse to shoot him. After sprinting away from the scene, Rittenhouse was chased down and slammed him in the head with a skateboard. After a few more paces, he stumbled and fell. Anthony Huber then attacked Rittenhouse by stomping on him, hitting him with his skateboard, and grabbing his weapon. Rittenhouse fired his AR and killed Anthony Huber, then, Rosenbaum walks right up to Rittenhouse, pulls out a fully loaded pistol, points it at Rittenhouse, and is shot directly in the bicep by Rittenhouse. Rosenbaum has previously spent time in prison for domestic abuse, choking his brother in 2012, and well as being a child molester. He also used antidepressants and had bipolar disorder, and many believe he attempted suicide by attacking Rittenhouse. The media attempted to portray these men as heroes for attempting to stop an active shooter although Rittenhouse was clearly running in the direction of law enforcement.

An article called The Rittenhouse Story: Explained was written, after the trial by NBC Chicago and it attempts to explain the case and each event that happened, but it reads without the full picture and with a strong bias against Rittenhouse. The article mentions, “Moments later, video taken by a photographer at a nearby scene showed Rittenhouse, armed with an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle, sitting on the ground and opening fire into the crowd around him. A man in the crowd was shot in the arm. A third man was seen in the footage unmoving on the ground before authorities arrive and carry him away”. This quote explains how the media is attempting to portray Rittenhouse. They portray him to be a mass shooter, by saying he was shooting “into the crowd”, although Rittenhouse was shooting his assaulters. Many outlets also do not mention how Rittenhouse was attacked, nor that the “man” who was shot in the arm was aiming a fully loaded weapon at Rittenhouse, which was an important factor in the trial. NBC then tries to show how Rittenhouse’s actions were unsafe as they write, “The rifle was being jerked around in all directions while it was being fired”. They paint him as an inexperienced 17-year-old who was influenced by the right-wing to do something like this, as they mention pictures of him with Proud Boys members and Trump. The case was the opposite though, as Kyle stated he was a supporter of Yang, a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidental primaries, and his major policy, which involves putting $1,000 each month into pockets of Americans as well as measuring happiness and not GDP. Rittenhouse was simply a passionate gun rights advocate and police force advocate. Another summary of Kyle’s life starts with, “Kyle Rittenhouse (3 January 2003-) was an American right-wing vigilante who, on 25 August 2020, shot and killed two Black Lives Matter protestors amid chaotic protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin.” (Historica). By using words such as “vigilante” and “shot and killed two Black Lives Matter protestors”, it seems like Rittenhouse is a racist lunatic who killed two people with no motive except race. It also includes “right-wing” which indicates a broader picture of associating these shooters with the right-wing although the republican party stated that they condemned the violence (Historica). These claims have caused Rittenhouse’s figure to be crushed, even after he was found non-guilty and to not be a racist, and his figure has been perpetually damaged.

Such news against Rittenhouse has caused many to urge him to sue and take legal action against such media outlets. One of the biggest advocates for this is Nick Sandmann, who claimed nearly a billion dollars in legal damages to his character. Sandmann, while in the March for Lives crowd, was taunted by a group of Black Hebrew students and war veteran Nathan Philips, who was attending a separate march about indigenous peoples. A video surfaced before the encounter with a Black Hebrew student yelling, “You little dirty ass crackers! Your day is coming! Your day is coming!” (CBS News). After an hour of saying homophobic and racist slurs, Nathan Philips claimed he heard insults from the MAGA boys, although no evidence of this was seen, and felt the need to walk up to Sandmann to defend the Black Hebrew students as well as their actions and started to chant in front of Sandmann in the middle of the crowd. This is where there is a film of Sandmann standing in front of Nathan with a MAGA cap. Media portrayed him similarly to Rittenhouse, as he was slandered and called “racist” and a “supremacist” for how he stood there and acted, as well as for the MAGA cap on his head. In the latest news section in Filmysiyappa, it states,” Sandmann urged Kyle to sue that national media who spread such news and Kyle has to take legal action against them” (Filmysiyappa). Sandmann has so far claimed around 800 million dollars in defamation cases against the media with CNN taking most of the damages, at around 275 million dollars. Many have speculated that this case against the media could be larger, as it happened for a longer period of time and has caused more damage than the damage done to Sandmann’s character.