Kyle Rittenhouse spoke out about the backlash he faced during his "Rittenhouse Recap" speaking event at the University of Memphis on Wednesday.
The 21-year-old was invited to the campus by the school's Turning Point USA chapter to speak about gun rights and the Black Lives Matter movement, but his event was cut short after dozens of students turned up in protest.
KENOSHA, WISCONSIN - NOVEMBER 19: Kyle Rittenhouse closes his eyes and cries as he is found not guilty on all counts at the Kenosha County Courthouse on November 19, 2021 in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Rittenhouse was found not guilty of all charges in the shooting of three demonstrators, killing two of them, during a night of unrest that erupted in Kenosha after a police officer shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back while being arrested in August 2020. Rittenhouse, from Antioch, Illinois, claimed self-defense who at the time of the shooting was armed with an assault rifle. (Photo by Sean Krajacic - Pool/Getty Images)
He stormed off the stage after audience members drowned out his speech and confronted him with some hardball questions during the Q&A portion.
Several Black students staged a walkout during the event.
Hundreds of protesters also stood outside the venue where Rittenhouse spoke. Campus police and state troopers were also present.
Rittenhouse admitted, while stroking his support dog in a post-event video shared by Turning Point USA on X, that he had reservations leading up to the event. "Honestly, I was a bit nervous going in there. I was scared," Rittenhouse shared. He even called a close friend who prayed for him.
"I knew I was going into a hostile environment and I knew I was most likely going to get booed off the stage, so my plan for that was, if they don't let me give a speech, I'm going to roll right into Q&A," Rittenhouse said. "We stopped the Q&A at a designated time and got out of there because we could just tell that the crowd was starting to get more and more hostile the more and more I shared my story."
🚨EXCLUSIVE: First interview with Kyle Rittenhouse following the event at the University of Memphis.
"I highly doubt they'll be held accountable for harassing, and intimidating, and chasing other students."@Julio_Rosas11 | @TPUSA | @charliekirk11 | @ThisIsKyleR pic.twitter.com/D0f1I3gSUx
— FRONTLINES (@FrontlinesTPUSA) March 21, 2024
Rittenhouse’s plan of action played out as he described.
"I was violently attacked by a mob of rioters and …” Rittenhouse began his speech before he was promptly drowned out by growing boos.
As planned, Rittenhouse quickly shifted to taking questions, which was met with equal or greater condemnation from the crowd.
One Black male student set things in motion when he reeled off numerous
