Kyle Rittenhouse said that he supports the Black Lives Matter movement, despite killing two men and wounding a third during a Black Lives Matter protest.
The 18-year-old was acquitted of murder last week following a trial that gripped a divided nation - with many conservatives cheering the decision.
But that rabid support appears to have been dented, after new comments from Rittenhouse himself.
In a preview clip from an upcoming interview with Fox News host Tucker Carlson, Rittenhouse insisted that his decision to travel to the protests while armed had ‘nothing to do with race’, and he said that he supports BLM.
“This case has nothing to do with race. It never had anything to do with race. It had to do with the right to self defence,” Rittenhouse said.
He continued: “I’m not a racist person. I support the BLM. I support peacefully protesting. âI believe there needs to be change. I believe there’s a lot of prospect to a misconduct - not just in my case but in a lot of cases.”
Kyle Rittenhouse: "This case has nothing to do with race."
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) November 22, 2021
Watch our exclusive interview, tomorrow at 8pm ET on @FoxNews pic.twitter.com/vXLEVtfycc
When people saw the interview clip surface on Carlson’s Twitter account, some on the right seems confused and angry at his position.
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The surprise statement indicates he just wants to return to being a normie. BLM is the state ideology, so someone probably told him to say this so normie world will be more open to him. It says more about our society than Rittenhouse https://t.co/Mo3Nci6DuT
— Scott Greer 6’2” IQ 187 (@ScottMGreer) November 22, 2021
Watching conservative Twitter implode in real time pic.twitter.com/WmkcMEK4IF
— Sat 💚🐳 (@browsersatdv4) November 22, 2021
They're upset that Rittenhouse said he supports BLM, but not that he's a murderer. Just in case you're wondering where the right is at in this country. https://t.co/20KuEV6SVW
— Read Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire (@JoshuaPotash) November 22, 2021
Conservatives losing their shit over Kyle Rittenhouse saying he supports BLM is so incredibly funny holy shit pic.twitter.com/x44Bb7LvJp
— Mother 🦂 (soy bisexual) (@punishedmother) November 22, 2021
Rittenhouse’s acquittal triggered protests against the US’s criminal justice system, as well as debates on the laws that allow citizens to carry guns.
Many protests took place on Sunday, with demonstrators calling for justice and chanting phrases such as “The Whole System is Guilty”.
Rittenhouse was accused of killing two people and injuring a third during a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer over the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
He claimed his acts were in self-defense during the trial.
Several Republicans, such as Matt Gaetz and J.D. Vance, expressed support of Rittenhouse.
Gaetz said that he would consider bringing him on as a congressional intern while Vance believed Rittenhouse was “slandered.”
Former President Donald Trump also called Rittenhouse “brave” for testifying in his own defence during the trial.
President Joe Biden noted that he had respect for the jury’s decision, but he released a written statement that the verdict left “many Americans feeling angry and concerned, myself included.”