Public school science teacher caught ranting to students: 'No godd**n way' armed Kyle Rittenhouse walks past cops with hands up 'if he was black'
A public school science teacher in the Seattle area was recorded ranting to students that there was "no goddamn way" an armed Kyle Rittenhouse would have walked past police with his "hands up" on the night of the Kenosha shootings "if he was black."
What are the details?
Radio host Jason Rantz reported for KTTH-AM that a student recorded the teacher — who's from Bothell High School, which is in the Northshore School District — on cellphone video discussing the Rittenhouse case during a Nov. 18 sophomore science class. The teacher was not named since he's not charged with a crime, the story noted.
Rantz said the teacher stopped a lesson on magnets to give students his point of view about the Rittenhouse case. The teacher's rant took place while the Rittenhouse jury was still deliberating.
The student who hit record did so after sensing the teacher was speaking inappropriately, Rantz wrote, adding that the student’s father shared the video with Rantz's radio show.
What did the teacher say?
“You can argue back and forth about ... what happened … and did [Rittenhouse] feel like he was really in danger and what the hell was he doing there in the first place. Where were his parents? That’s what I want to know, OK?” the teacher is heard saying. “So, that’s arguable. That’s what the trial is about. Was he acting in self-defense when he shot those people? That’s for the jury to figure out. That’s not for me to figure out.”
Fairly even-handed so far — but then things got racial.
“But for me, what’s the most appalling thing about this is [Rittenhouse] ran toward the police with his hands up, with a weapon right here, and the police did this — they waved him through," the teacher said in a decidedly exasperated tone. "Seriously, if he was black, would he have been waved through? No goddamn way.”
The teacher continued: “That’s what this is about ... it’s about people seeing people differently. There's no way he would've been waved through the police line with a semiautomatic weapon if he was a different race."
'Put your hand down — it’s my turn'
Then it appears that the student who's recording the teacher's rant puts his hand up to ask a question or make a point.
Image source: YouTube screenshot
But the teacher rebuffs him: "Put your hand down. It’s my turn, OK?”
The teacher added that Rittenhouse walking past cops was "an example of racism being used as a weapon — not weaponizing racism. OK? Racism exists. White guys like me don’t see it because it’s not part of my experience."
By the end of the clip, the teacher thanks students for listening to him take the lesson "sideways" before apparently returning to academics.
Here's cellphone video that captures the teacher's rant; the camera is pointed toward the classroom ceiling almost the entire time.
Content warning: language
Seattle-area teacher recorded during vulgar, anti-police Kyle Rittenhouse rantyoutu.be
Investigation underway
A district spokesperson told "The Jason Rantz Show" that officials are investigating what happened in the class but didn't respond to questions regarding whether the district encourages such teacher-to-student commentary. Rantz added that the teacher didn't respond to a request for comment.
The parent who sent the video to Rantz told the host that his son has complained about this teacher inserting progressive views into the classroom on previous occasions — and that teachers in general implement “equity and inclusion” instruction throughout the week.
“My son didn’t even mention Kyle Rittenhouse, nor did any other students," the parent said, according to Rantz. "The teacher raised it entirely on his own as an example of racism."
Teacher is a 'threat to those students'
Rantz added that the teacher is a "threat to those students."
"The teacher believes in white privilege, thus it must be true," he added. "There’s no room for nuance or another explanation. Is that the kind of thinking a parent would want in front of their kids? A teacher who chooses to indoctrinate and tell students how to think rather than giving them the tools to think for themselves?"
Rantz also said that "there’s no sign that level of overt indoctrination will end. The student deserves praise for documenting this kind of egregious overstepping of boundaries."
The following news report aired just after the shootings in August 2020:
Attorneys representing Kyle Rittenhouse say he was wrongfully charged after 'acting in self-defense'youtu.be