Four Shot at Kenosha Protests

Four people have been shot at protests in the wake of the Kenosha shooting. What really happened?

Summary

On 25 August, three people were shot (two killed, one wounded) at a protest in Kenosha, WI. All three of the victims were white activists participating in the Black Lives Matter march in Kenosha.

• The shooter was Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old pro-police activist from Illinois. Mr. Rittenhouse has been charged with homicide, but his attorney says that he was acting in self-defense.
• On 29 August, a right-wing activist was shot and killed at a Trump rally in Portland. A gunman has not been identified.
• Donald Trump has advocated for the deployment of the national guard in Portland, which has been rocked by protests since July.

• Portrays the shootings as a gun control
• Portrays Kyle Rittenhouse as a conservative nutjob, and uses strong language to paint him as an aggressor.
• Sees the Kenosha incident as representative of the republican party, portraying the GOP and its supporters as problematic and misinformed.
• Argues in the wake of both shootings that the violence is here to stay.

• Give Kyle Rittenhouse the benefit of the doubt, portraying him as a good kid.
• Portrays the protests as violent, stoking the flames of ongoing unrest and condemning left-wing media for downplaying it.
• Condemn Portland mayor Ted Wheeler for not accepting Trump’s offer to deploy the national guard.
• Focuses reporting on the Portland victim rather than the Kenosha victims.

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© Evelyn Torsher, 2020