Police declare a riot in Oregon’s largest city as observers condemn discrepancy in how law enforcement treats militia supporters and anti-racism protesters
About 200 protesters in Portland, Oregon, broke windows and threw objects at police on Friday night as reaction poured in after a jury cleared Kyle Rittenhouse over the shooting deaths of two people at an anti-racism protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year.
Sheriffs in the city declared a riot downtown after “violent, destructive behavior by a significant part of the crowd”, with reports some talked about burning down the Justice Center.
Police used loudspeakers to ask the crowd to disperse or face the use of force, including “pepper spray and impact weapons”. By 11pm the crowd had broken up and largely dispersed.
In Kenosha, shouting matches flared on the courthouse steps between supporters of opposing sides, embodying the wildly different lenses through which a divided America viewed the case.
Protest marches were also held in Chicago and New York.
With reaction pouring in from both sides of the political divide, the Rittenhouse case has split the nation, with many pointing out the discrepancy between the law enforcement’s treatment of the armed white militia supporter and anti-racism protesters.
Rittenhouse has become a cause célèbre for many conservatives, who have raised money for his legal team. He had traveled to Kenosha from Illinois amid disturbances in the city after a white police officer shot Jacob Blake, who is Black, in the back.
After the announcement that Rittenhouse had been acquitted on all charges, politicians and public figures shared their views on the verdict via social media.
“The verdict in the #KyleRittenhouse case is a travesty and fails to deliver justice on behalf of those who lost their lives as they peacefully assembled to protest against police brutality and violence,” tweeted the NAACP.
Bernice King, a minister and daughter of Martin Luther King Jr, said on Twitter: “Justice is not just about verdicts. It is a continuum. We can galvanize around changing our culture, including challenging the difference in how a Black male teen would have been engaged in Kenosha.”
Be A King on X (formerly Twitter): “I know so many are weary and tired. But justice is not just about verdicts. It is a continuum. We can galvanize around changing our culture, including challenging the difference in how a Black male teen would have been engaged in Kenosha. / X”
I know so many are weary and tired. But justice is not just about verdicts. It is a continuum. We can galvanize around changing our culture, including challenging the difference in how a Black male teen would have been engaged in Kenosha.
