Posted on April 20, 2023

Man Who Shot Ralph Yarl Was Fueled by Racism and ‘Watching Fox News All Day’, Grandson Tells Don Lemon

Ken Meyer, Mediaite, April 20, 2023

The grandson of the man who shot 16-year-old Ralph Yarl described his grandfather as a conspiracy theorist and avid consumer of right-wing media who was acting upon racism in an interview with CNN Thursday morning.

84-year-old Kansas City homeowner Andrew Lester shot the African-American teenager after he came to Lester’s house because he had the wrong address. {snip}

The case has prompted renewed discussions about self-defense, guns, and racism in America, so Don Lemon spoke about it on Thursday with Lester’s grandson, Klint Ludwig. Ludwig called the shooting “a horrible tragedy that never should have happened,” so Lemon asked him why he is speaking out against his grandfather.

“It’s the right thing to do,” he said. “In this country, it happens over and over again where people get away with killing unarmed innocent black people {snip}”

Asked if he believes his grandfather is racist, Ludwig answered, “I believe he holds racist tendencies and beliefs.” He went on to say “He’s just a stock American Christian male. It’s an older, you know, that’s just how they are. It’s the conspiracies and weird, random, racist things they say, and it doesn’t make sense, but they’re just scared.”

Lemon asked Ludwig to elaborate further, prompting Ludwig to note Lester was an avid viewer of Fox News.

{snip}

Original Article