On November 23rd, 2021, the House Resolution 6070 was filed to award Kyle Rittenhouse a Congressional Gold Medal and it was sponsored by Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. The Congressional Gold Medal is also known as “Congress’s highest expression of national appreciation for distinguishing achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions,” as The New World Encyclopedia described it. This “highest expression of national appreciation”, is said to be given to Kyle Rittenhouse for protecting the community of Kenosha, Wisconsin. This Illinois-resident flew down to Wisconsin to walk among Black Lives Matter protesters.

Video footage by bystanders and protesters show Kyle and several demonstrators and armed citizens wreaking havoc on the city. This peaceful protest was demanding justice for an African American man by the name of Jacob Blake, who was left paralyzed after a police encounter. It ended with the deaths of both unarmed 36-year-old Joseph Rosenbaum who threw a plastic bag at Rittenhouse and was punished with death, and after panicking and running to a police line, Rittenhouse then shot and killed 26-year-old Anthony Huber who believed he was an active shooter and chased him along with other protesters, ultimately hitting him with a skateboard to stop him. One person was injured in the chase to catch Rittenhouse and that was Gaige Grosskreutz, who was there with medical aid and lost 90% of his right bicep after being shot by Rittenhouse. After the shooting, Grosskreutz filed a lawsuit saying that, “alleging that city officials and law enforcement were aware of, supported and collaborated with armed vigilantes on the night of the shooting” quoted from NPR News. Rittenhouse originally faced 6 counts, including homicide charges and a misdemeanor weapons charge and ended the trial with all charges acquitted. Rittenhouse’s attorneys argued that he shot and killed Rosenbaum and Huber and injured Grosskreutz out of self-defense and was found “not guilty”.

Now Kyle Rittenhouse is being nominated for the bill because Republican Congresswoman, Marjorie Taylor Green believes that, “the teenager protected the community of Kenosha, Wisconsin, during a Black Lives Matter riot” as Independent News stated. This bill is currently in progress and needs to be approved by two thirds of the Congress and if approved, he will join a list of people listing George Washington, Mother Teresa, and Nelson Mandela as a couple recipients. On twitter Marjorie Greene was reminded of her past opinions on a similar bill she voted against earlier that same year that was passed, awarding the gold medal to “the US Capitol Police officers who risked their lives during the deadly January 6 riot,” stated Huff post. The January riot was the attack on the capitol that resulted in two police officers who took their own lives defending the capitol. The officers defended the capital by risking their lives and ultimately it drove two of the officers to the point of death. Kyle Rittenhouse, in the Republican Congresswoman’s opinion, “deserves to be remembered as a hero who defended his community, protected businesses, and acted lawfully in the face of lawlessness.” This bill rewarding Kyle Rittenhouse could change everything.