Fanatical leftists descend on Memphis conservative event, mob Kyle Rittenhouse

Kyle Rittenhouse has survived yet another mobbing by rabid leftists, this time in America's most dangerous city: Democrat-run Memphis.

The 21-year-old Second Amendment advocate spoke Wednesday at an event hosted by the University of Memphis student chapter of Turning Point USA. An event listing indicated that Rittenhouse was planning to "share his side of the story that caught the media's eye in 2020."

Rittenhouse has long been vilified over his fateful 2020 encounter with leftist guerillas in the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Aug. 25, 2020.

Rittenhouse, then 17 years old, shot three radicals in self-defense during a BLM riot, sending two of his attackers — a domestic abuser with multiple convictions and a convicted, violent child molester — to the morgue and disarming a third who had advanced on him with a loaded weapon.

While Rittenhouse was initially charged with homicide, attempted homicide, and reckless endangerment, he was ultimately acquitted in November 2021. The jury understood that Kyle was not guilty, but the media successfully cast him in the minds of many as a villain.

The TPUSA event and others like it thus afford Rittenhouse an opportunity to set the record straight.

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside, screaming at guests and hindering the flow of traffic in and out of the UC Theatre.

Signs hoisted above the angry mob said, "No killers on my campus," "Say their names," "You're in denial Kyle," "Murderers don't belong here," and "No one should be open to: Racism, Christo-Fascism, Murderous Little S***s," reported the Commercial Appeal.

It is apparent that some of the student protesters latched onto the suggestion, disseminated by Democrats and the liberal media around the time of Rittenhouse's trial, that Rittenhouse is racist.

Richard Massey, a sophomore at the university, evidenced this misunderstanding, telling WMC-TV, "We're also a city that is predominately Black and we’re also a city that is grappling with gun violence. ... We are actively giving a platform to a white nationalist."

A spokesman for the university indicated ahead of the event that the institution was legally required to permit the survivor to speak, noting in a statement obtained by the Commercial Appeal, "The upcoming event at the University of Memphis featuring Kyle Rittenhouse is not sponsored by the University. A registered student organization, University of Memphis TPUSA, is hosting the event. Under the First Amendment and Tennessee's Campus Free Speech Act, the University of Memphis cannot legally prohibit such events from being hosted by a registered student organization."

Despite this understanding, it appears there was nevertheless resistance to an alternative opinion on campus.

TPUSA spokesman Andrew Kolvet claimed that ahead of the student event at the University of Memphis, school administrators leaked "ticketing information to protester groups so they can reserve large numbers of newly issued tickets and sabotage the events. We know this because some of our students are in the protester group chats."

Footage circulating online indicates protesters had a presence inside the theater. The extent of their disruptions is unclear.

The TPUSA student chapter president was also allegedly doxxed prior to the event. The conservative outfit indicated that "his full name, phone number, and even his exact address were posted online with the comment, 'Let him know how you feel about this decision to provoke black students by inviting a racist murderer on campus.'"

Lauren Shelley, the director of conferences and event services at the university, allegedly laughed off the student's concern, suggesting the student "probably shouldn't stay there tonight."

TPUSA indicated it has reached out to the university for comment but has yet to receive a response.

When the event drew to a close, the mob swarmed attendees attempting to leave the venue and tried to bar Rittenhouse's exit. Police ultimately had to escort TPUSA through the throng of radicals.

Rittenhouse managed to safely arrive at his destination, where he laughed off his critics' alternate histories.

"Great event. Interesting people to say the least," said Rittenhouse.

The event prompted Rittenhouse to conclude that "Memphis is an interesting city."

One of the Second Amendment advocate's staunchest critics in the lead-up to the event, former Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer — a Democrat now running to become the county's general sessions court clerk — wrote on X that she was "proud of the Univeristy [sic] of Memphis students who organized resistance tonight, as well as the Black Student Association, the U of M NAACP, alums, and faculty who spoke out."

Despite Rittenhouse's acquittal by a jury of his peers, Sawyer also continues to smear him, claiming, "Rittenhouse murdered people."

Supporters countered some of the vitriol Rittenhouse encountered on the ground and online.

For instance, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) wrote Thursday, "At age 17, Kyle Rittenhouse had a greater sense of civic duty than most people exhibit in a lifetime. While trying to help during riots, he was attacked by convicts and exercised his right to self defense, killing a child molester & a domestic abuser convicted of strangulation."

Massie underscored, "He was found innocent in a court of law."

Mike Davis of the Article III Project tweeted, "Kyle Rittenhouse is a hero for protecting his community from violent leftwing lunatics. We have a God-given right to self-defense. Violent leftwing activists should live in healthy fear they will meet their maker if they threaten the lives of law-abiding Americans."

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