The riot-ravaged city of Kenosha is considering erecting a public memorial for a former skateboarder shot by Kyle Rittenhouse.
City councilors heard a proposal to honor Anthony Huber with a tree and plaque in the city’s Anderson Park at a hearing Monday night.
They delayed a decision until a later date.
Huber’s girlfriend, Hannah Gittings, applied for a public memorial to Huber almost two years after he was one of two men shot by Kyle Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time.
If the Commission votes to go ahead with the proposal, responsibility for maintenance would fall to Gittings.
The shooting came amid nights of violent protests in the city after police shot dead black domestic abuser Jacob Blake.
The city of Kenosha, Wisconsin is considering erecting a plaque for Anthony Gruber, who was shot by Kyle Rittenhouse during the 2020 BLM riots
Anthony Huber (right) and Lindsay Gettings (left) brought forward the proposal for a public memorial to their murdered friend to be placed in a public park in Kenosha
Huber was mortally wounded after stalking Kyle Rittenhouse on the night of August 25, 2020. Prior to Huber’s assassination, Rittenhouse had already shot and killed 36-year-old Joseph Rosenbaum
During arguments over the issue, Huber’s previous criminal record, including a domestic violence charge, was brought up.
It is unclear whether this will ultimately influence the decision on whether to have a memorial dedicated to him.
In 2018, Huber was found guilty of domestic violence and disorderly conduct. In 2012, Huber spent time in prison following a suffocation incident with his brother.
One of the speakers at the hearing was Kevin Matthewson, a former Parks Commission councilman and Kenosha Guard militia leader.
Matthewson called the August 25 events “justified.” He added: “Don’t play games. Deny this. This is a man who is a felon who put a knife to his sister’s throat and slit his brother’s throat.
The militia leader said Huber was a “multiple criminal” who “played a stupid game on August 25 and unfortunately lost his life.”
Rittenhouse, left, inverted cap, walks with another armed civilian down Sheridan Road in Kenosha, Wisconsin
Another speaker, Kenosha resident Kathy Woods, said: “Of all the bone head things you could consider. Don’t think about it.’
Woods added: “This is an insult to the people who have memorials. who have done good.’
Matthewson said that Huber’s family “deserves our prayers, but they do not deserve to be honored and remembered in this city.”
Huber was mortally wounded after Rittenhouse shot him in the chest. Huber had hit Rittenhouse with a skateboard before being mortally wounded.
The skateboarder had given chase after Rittenhouse shot and killed another man, 36-year-old convicted pedophile Joseph Rosenbaum.
Rittenhouse was acquitted of murder in November 2021.
Rittenhouse fatally shot Joseph Rosenbaum (left), 36, with an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle after Rosenbaum chased Rittenhouse across a parking lot and threw a plastic bag at him just before midnight on August 25, 2020
In April 2022, Huber’s friend Hannah Gittings submitted documents requesting a public memorial to be placed on a flowering dogwood tree in Anderson Park, Kenosha, according to documents filed with the City of Kenosha.
The park is three miles from where Huber was killed.
The application was voted on by the Kenosha Park Commission on the night of April 25. The committee voted to defer a final decision on the memorial. The commission consists of five city councillors.
In November 2021, Rittenhouse was acquitted of all charges related to the killings of Huber and Rosenbaum. Hannah Gittings has expressed her condolences to Rittenhouse
During arguments over the issue, Huber’s previous criminal record, including a domestic violence charge, was brought up.
In 2018, Huber was found guilty of domestic violence and disorderly conduct. In 2012, Huber spent time in prison following a suffocation incident with his brother.
In his obituary, Huber was described as a passionate skateboarder known for his “quick wit and comedic personality.”
Despite Huber’s killing, Gittings told the New York Post in a November 2021 interview, “I have a lot of sympathy for [Rittenhouse] because he’s just a kid to me, so it was like a really stupid kid that unfortunately became the poster child for it.
Gittings went on to blame some of the blame for Huber’s death on the city of Kenosha, saying, “Kenosha also needs to be held responsible for this militia showing up and doing exactly what they came here to do.”