Chuck Todd, host of MSNBC’s Meet the Press, misidentified an unrelated speaker on the steps of the Kenosha County Courthouse as “Jacob Blake’s uncle” after the Kyle Rittenhouse verdict on Friday.
“Jacob Blake’s uncle is speaking right now. We want to listen into that,” Todd said as the segment cut to the misidentified speaker, identified by the Associated Press as pastor Bishop Tavis Grant.
“Folks, justice has never been about taking lives, saving lives. It’s never been about tearing down communities. It’s been about building communities,” Grant said. “It’s never been about division. It’s been about unity. We’re gonna maintain peace and protest in these streets. And all over America, our voices are going to be heard. All over America, our feet are going to take to the streets of America. We know the truth. And one thing about the truth: The truth will make you free. We’re not satisfied. We’re not going to be pacified.”
RITTENHOUSE JUDGE PERMANENTLY BARS MSNBC FROM COURTHOUSE AFTER PRODUCER CAUGHT TAILING JURY BUS
Todd issued an apology and correction after the mistake and said they received bad information in the studio.
“Alright, that is not Jacob Blake’s uncle. We got some bad information to us. And when we turned the camera on … my apologies for that,” Todd said.
Blake was left paralyzed after being shot by a white police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Grant called for peaceful protests in the streets instead of the violent riots that have broken out in the past.
The Rittenhouse trial centered on the deaths of protesters Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber last year during violent riots over Blake’s injuries in Wisconsin. Rittenhouse also fired at and injured Gaige Grosskreutz.
A 12-person jury found the teenager not guilty on all five counts, ranging from intentional homicide to reckless disregard for human safety.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Our justice system is broken. It protects white supremacy. The two people who were killed deserved justice and so did our communities who continue be targeted with violence like this,” tweeted Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib. “This painful verdict sends a horrifying message that bringing violence to a protest for racial justice is acceptable. It’s incitement, not justice.”
Protests have broken out in multiple cities across the nation as a result of the verdict, all of which have remained peaceful.
