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Kyle Rittenhouse: GoFundMe removes fundraisers for Kenosha shooter as Christian crowdfunding raises $140K

GiveSendGo, a Christian crowdfunding website, stated that 'Kyle Rittenhouse just defended himself from a brutal attack by multiple members of the far-leftist group ANTIFA'

Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, the alleged Kenosha shooter is facing charges for allegedly killing two protesters, Anthony M Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum. According to The Epoch Times, Rittenhouse was charged on August 27 with six counts, including one count of first-degree reckless homicide. The report claims the teenager will be shifted from Illinois to Wisconsin following a hearing on August 28.

The Kenosha shooting suspect, allegedly called a friend of his to tell them that he "killed somebody" and then proceeded to shoot two others, reports state. The Epoch Times was informed by a police chief that Rittenhouse was part of a youth police cadet program. Since his arrest, a lot of debate has been going on – some say he is rightly blamed, others say he acted on self-defense.

But Huber’s friend told CBS 58, as per the report, that Huber “put his life on the line for others. That’s what he did.” The report states that Hannah Gittings, Huber’s partner, told demonstrators that he “took down an armed gunman” with his skateboard.

Dan Miskinis of Kenosha Police Department told reporters in a press conference that the shootings were a case of “senseless violence.” He said what led to the violence is not yet determined, according to The Epoch Times.

Meanwhile, multiple legal fundraisers were started for Rittenhouse on GoFundMe website. However, they were taken down. A spokesperson told The Epoch Times that, “I can confirm that the fundraisers to support Kyle Rittenhouse have been removed from the platform because they violated GoFundMe Terms of Service, and all donors have been refunded.” According to their terms, as quoted by the report, the site states, funds cannot be raised  “for the legal defense of alleged crimes associated with hate, violence, harassment, bullying, discrimination, terrorism, or intolerance of any kind.”

The report states that one of the fundraisers for Rittenhouse had raised nearly $3,400 before it was shut down. The organizer had started it for the teen because “he’s in jail for defending himself against Mobs.” According to the Washington Times, a campaign created on crowdfunding site Fundly had raised more than $50,000 on August 26, but later disappeared as well.

But soon another website GiveSendGo kept the fundraising campaign for Rittenhouse alive. Spokeswoman Heather Wilson told The Epoch Times in an email that, “GiveSendGo is committed to giving both sides of the political culture in our society an equal chance to let their voices be heard. We will not be removing this campaign.” The website describes itself as a Christian crowdfunding website. An employee of the website informed The Epoch Times that the site was being cyber attacked because of the campaign.

The fundraising description in the Christian website read as “Kyle Rittenhouse just defended himself from a brutal attack by multiple members of the far-leftist group ANTIFA – the experience was undoubtedly a brutal one, as he was forced to take two lives to defend his own. Now, Kyle is being unfairly charged with murder 1, by a DA who seems determined only to capitalize on the political angle of the situation. The situation was clearly self-defense, and Kyle and his family will undoubtedly need money to pay for the legal fees. Let's give back to someone who bravely tried to defend his community.”  On the website, the goal is set as $200,000 of which more than $140,000 has been raised. The page mentions 'Campaign Created by 'Friends of the Rittenhouse family'. 

According to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, a legal team from the #FightBack Foundation stated that they will be a part of Rittenhouse's defense team. #FightBack Foundation Inc. was started in Texas from August 12, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Lawyer L. Lin Wood was quoted in the report saying that he helped form the foundation with “a mission to protect and defend our Constitution on many fronts.” He told the website on an email that “Kyle’s defense is one of those fronts.”

Wood was in the news because he was the lawyer who helped a Covington Catholic High School student Nicholas Sandmann sue CNN, The Washington Post and other media companies in 2019 over an alleged defamation. The teen was in the news when videos of him and his classmates interacting with protesters outside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., went viral.  According to the report, the companies settled this summer for undisclosed amounts. The #FightBack Foundation will accept donations for Rittenhouse's legal defense and a  website for the foundation will be started soon he said. As per the report, Wood said that John Pierce will lead the defense team. The lawyers said the #FightBack Foundation is the only approved fund for Rittenhouse's legal fees. "Please be wary of any other efforts to raise money for Kyle’s defense," Wood said.

Twitter also weighed in on the news. One user wrote: "@gofundme lawsuits to follow as Go Fund Me is being discriminatory in its designation of what fundraisers are allowed to happen. They allow BLM and rioters to have funds set up, but not Kyle Rittenhouse. I’ve read lawsuits will be served on Monday! It’s about time!! Go get them!"

Another stated, "With Democrats literally releasing prisoners why was the fundraiser for Kyle Rittenhouse? So in America, you can no longer support whoever you want. @gofundme is betraying the very people that fought for the freedom to have a company. Commie soy drinkers."

Another said, "@realDonaldTrump Please pardon Kyle Rittenhouse. GoFundMe has decided to take it upon themselves to interfere in his legal defense. The Democrats repeatedly release violent rioters without bail, so this young man who defended himself deserves the same consideration."

Another said, "@realDonaldTrump do you agree with crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe and Fundly banning campaigns to support Kyle Rittenhouse legal expenses? They have shut him down! So much for innocent until proven guilty."

There were others who had a different opinion. One alleged, "The "Christian" version of GoFundMe is called "GiveSendGo." People are literally raising money for TERRORIST Kyle Rittenhouse there right now. If you think this sounds UNCHRISTIAN, maybe you should email them at info@GiveSendGo.com "

Another alleged, "@Fundly Gofundme took down the campaign for the murderers' Kyle Rittenhouse why are you still allowing a fund for this killer? Is that what you support?"