Some members of Antifa are responding to the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse last week by getting guns themselves.
According to social media posts collected by conservative journalist Andy Ngo, the violent leftist group sees as a threat to them Mr. Rittenhouse’s successful claim of self-defense in the shootings of three rioters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year.
“Antifa accounts in Portland & beyond are terrified over the Rittenhouse acquittal because they’re afraid others will shoot them dead during an attack & have a legal argument for self-defense. They’re urging comrades to get guns immediately so they can kill before being killed,” Mr. Ngo wrote on Twitter, providing multiple screenshots to support his claim.
#Antifa accounts in Portland & beyond are terrified over the #Rittenhouse acquittal because they’re afraid others will shoot them dead during an attack & have a legal argument for self-defense. They’re urging comrades to get guns immediately so they can kill before being killed. pic.twitter.com/H7dz2Bm1rc
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) November 23, 2021
The account Antifada161 noted that “every leftist and antifascist who doesn’t have guns…should consider getting one/some as fast as possible” just hours after the acquittal.
Another screen-shotted activist replied by saying he was worried about carrying a gun without knowing how to use it, but solicited for “an antifascist group to learn with in SW Washington.”
The shadowy group is purposely secretive and its masked activists basically never use their real names or have verifiable identities on social media.
But numerous group members, following the framing of the Rittenhouse case on MSNBC and other left-leaning news outlets, said last week’s verdict gives conservatives a right to kill them.
“Can’t stress enough about how much the Rittenhouse acquittal has altered the protest landscape. What little safety we thought we might have had doesn’t actually exist and it’s just open season on us for all of the Kyle Rittenhouses,” wrote Twitter poster “VioletNightmare.”
Activist “Chud Watch” agreed and said the fears were widespread.
“We talk about this all the time with our close circles … the day the boy walked, the game changed,” he wrote.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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