Kent State University students to protest campus event featuring Kyle Rittenhouse
Nearly a month after he stormed out of a campus event in Memphis, Kyle Rittenhouse is set to take the stage at Kent State University's Kiva Auditorium today at 6 p.m.
The event, organized by the conservative student group Turning Point USA, was met with backlash.
Leaving early: Watch Kyle Rittenhouse storm out of University of Memphis event amid questions
Student organizations like the Spanish and Latine Student Association and United Students Against Sweatshops issued a petition and organized protest events scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, according to a Kent SALSA Instagram post.
On Tuesday, students will walk out of class at noon, host a press conference at 3:30 p.m. and a 5:30 p.m. teach-in at Oscar Ritchie Hall
Rittenhouse made headlines when he shot three protestors, killing two, at a Black Lives Matter rally in Wisconsin in 2020. He was charged and acquitted during a 2021 trial.
Petition opposed to Rittenhouse gets 3,000 signatures
A Change.org petition created by Kent students opposed to the speaking event has over 3,600 signatures.
Nearly 50 years ago in 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of KSU demonstrators. Four students were killed and nine wounded. The Rittenhouse event, the petition explained, is at odds with that history.
"The decision to host an individual associated with such violence is not only insensitive to our community's past but also threatens to further divide us in these already tense times," the petition reads.
The petition urged Kent State University and Turning Point USA to reconsider the event.
Who is Kyle Rittenhouse?
Rittenhouse gained notoriety at the age of 17 when he shot and killed two demonstrators and injured a third in Kenosha, Wisconsin, as they protested the shooting of a Black man by a white police officer.
Acquittal: Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all counts of homicide, reckless endangerment
He arrived in the city with a semiautomatic rifle bought for him by a friend. At 17, he was too young to legally buy it. Rittenhouse claimed he came from Illinois to Kenosha to protect local businesses and serve as a medic.
After the deadly shooting, he faced five felony charges, including two counts of first-degree intentional homicide. Arguing self-defense in his trial, Rittenhouse was acquitted in 2021.
Rittenhouse ushered off stage in Memphis
Rittenhouse has become a divisive figure, so when the University of Memphis' Turning Point USA chapter invited him to speak in March, he was met with stiff opposition.
Crowds of protestors lined the sidewalks and streets outside the venue, singing and chanting in opposition to the event.
After 30 minutes on stage, his appearance was short after being questioned by attendees. He was ushered off stage without a word to the audience, the Tennessean reported.
What is Turning Point USA?
This time the Kent chapter of Turning Point USA invited Rittenhouse to speak at their college campus.
Turning Point USA is a conservative nonprofit that advocates for conservative politics in schools ranging from high school to college and university campuses, according to the TPUSA website.
They often bring in speakers like Rittenhouse to talk about conservative talking points, sometimes sparking backlash.
Bryce Buyakie covers courts and public safety for the Beacon Journal. He can be reached by email at bbuyakie@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @bryce_buyakie.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Kyle Rittenhouse speech meets opposition at Kent State University
