• About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • Professor Phillip Levine Discusses “A Problem of Fit”
      Professor Phillip Levine Discusses “A Problem of Fit”
    • CS Department shifts CS 111 course structure
      CS Department shifts CS 111 course structure
    • WAMI and WRJ host discussion on criminalization of abortion
      WAMI and WRJ host discussion on criminalization of abortion
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • Why Art Basel is partially responsible for Miami’s gentrification
      Why Art Basel is partially responsible for Miami’s gentrification
    • It’s time to put traditional grading to the test
      It’s time to put traditional grading to the test
    • What can the fall of Z-library teach us about textbook accessibility?
      What can the fall of Z-library teach us about textbook accessibility?
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • No image
      Pentimento’s Open Mic is Like an Old Patchwork Quilt–Worn, Yet Cozy
    • No image
      Kanye’s Antisemitism Steps on his Shoe Brand
    • Lousy Realities: Luca Guadagnino (2015)
      Lousy Realities: Luca Guadagnino (2015)
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
    • Books Before Boys
  • Sports and Wellness
    • Student-Athlete of October
      Student-Athlete of October
    • Athletics Update Oct. 19, 2022
      Athletics Update Oct. 19, 2022
    • The Case for Body Neutrality
      The Case for Body Neutrality
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • The Wellesley Snooze
    • Top 10 Girlbosses who aren’t alumnae, but I would totally believe you if you told me they were
      Top 10 Girlbosses who aren’t alumnae, but I would totally believe you if you told me they were
    • Wendy Wellesley’s Thanksgiving Menu
      Wendy Wellesley’s Thanksgiving Menu
    • The Snooze Awards for the Best Tanners of 2022
      The Snooze Awards for the Best Tanners of 2022
  • Miscellanea
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
      Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
    • 50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
      50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Micol J. Zhai OpinionsDecember 8, 2021

Rittenhouse acquittal: clemency for white vigilantes

Kyle Rittenhouse is unfortunately a name we’ve seen plenty of in our newsfeeds these past weeks. Last year, Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time, fatally shot two men and injured another at a racial justice protest in Kenosha, WI, following the death of a local Black man at the hands of the police. Although he went to the protest armed with an AR-15 style rifle, he maintained in his testimony that his objective that night was to act as a medic and protect private property. Rittenhouse has since been acquitted by an almost entirely white jury of all five charges, which could have amounted to a life sentence had he been convicted.

Watching this spectacle take place in a system meant for delivering justice, I find it difficult to not feel deeply disturbed. The facts stand that Rittenhouse went to an antiracism protest as a Blue Lives Matter supporter, pretended to be a medic, was armed with an illegally procured military-style rifle and caused the very type of violence he claimed to be preventing. It feels that for Rittenhouse to be acquitted, there had to be a certain amount of reasonable doubt and sympathy extended to him from the jury. Beyond the judgment of this overwhelmingly white jury, Judge Bruce Schroeder also showed favorability towards the defendant at moments. However, if it had been a Black defendant in the courtroom that day, it’s difficult to imagine the same treatment and level of belief being given to them. The racial disparities in sentencing were never more clear than when the jury delivered their decision.  

Even more so, the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse has become a reason for right-wing celebration as it sets a possibly exploitable legal precedent. In a nation that is brawling severely over racial issues, the Rittenhouse verdict is clemency not just for him but for all white vigilantes. This acquittal is especially worrying because of how conservative Americans and right-wing extremists are currently viewing it. The legions have taken their celebrations to social media, posting messages such as “open season on lib trash commies!” and “BLMKKK gotta be shitting. We have permission to defend ourselves now.” For them, Rittenhouse v. State provides the big legal OK to “protect their country” from the “villainous Blacks, Jews, Asians and liberals” without having to worry over the consequences of the law. 

This case is much larger than just Rittenhouse and his victims. This criminal trial has stepped on some of America’s most divisive fault lines: gun rights, self-defense, violence at antiracism protests and the justice system’s difference in treatment of white people compared to people of color. The acquittal of Rittenhouse sends a frightening message about America’s future best said by the parents of victim Anthony Huber, “Today’s verdict means there is no accountability for the person who murdered our son. It sends the unacceptable message that armed civilians can show up in any town, incite violence and then use the danger they have created to justify shooting people in the street.” 

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous articlePrivacy as a currency
Next articleWellesley’s erasure of Indian Muslims

You may also like

Why Art Basel is partially responsible for Miami’s gentrification

It’s time to put traditional grading to the test

Banner reading this website has been seized over images of a book shelf

What can the fall of Z-library teach us about textbook accessibility?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2023 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top