A defense team from #FightBack Foundation representing shooter Kyle Rittenhouse set up their own fundraiser after GoFundMe shot down the team's fundraising campaign. The white teen is accused of killing two Black Lives Matter protesters and injuring one in Wisconsin's Kenosha.
#FightBack Foundation Inc., a Texas-based non-profit set up by attorneys Lin Wood and John Pierce announced on Twitter they would be representing 17-year-old Rittenhouse. In a Twitter post, Wood demanded "justice for Kyle" and sought donations from "freedom loving Americans."
The move came after Rittenhouse's father Tom Rittenhouse set up a fundraiser "Help us Free Kyle!" on GoFundMe, which deleted the campaign hours later. The fundraising company had to face a backlash from conservatives for shutting down the campaign and some even accused it of being biased towards Rittenhouse's alleged victim Anthony Huber, who the conservative social media users claimed to have had a history of domestic violence. Huber died of a gunshot allegedly fired by Rittenhouse. His friend launched a GoFundMe fundraiser to financially help Huber's girlfriend and his step-daughter.
GoFundMe spokesperson Angelique McNaughton said the website deleted the fundraiser associated with Rittenhouse because it violated the company's terms of service, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. People who made donations to the Rittenhouse campaign were refunded, McNaughton reportedly added.
After GoFundMe removed the Rittenhouse fundraiser, #FightBack Foundation sought donations to help the teen's legal team. On its website, the foundation noted it was started to counter "lies and fake news" by "the radical left mob."
"While the fake news media will assure you that the nationwide protests are 'mostly peaceful,' rioters are destroying businesses and livelihoods. Too many city governments, controlled by the far left, stand by and let 'peaceful protesters' attack people and destroy property," #FightBack Foundation's website read. "These people and their businesses have constitutional rights that their city officials swore to protect. And since they've failed to protect them, we're ready to sue them until they do."
Attorney Wood posted a link to the foundation's fundraiser on Twitter. However, some Twitter users called him out for supporting Rittenhouse, who was reportedly a part of an armed militia group that sought to defend businesses from the Black Lives Matter protesters.
