Man Who Confronted Wauwatosa Protesters Just Wants To Talk

WAUWATOSA, WI— Video of a man's confrontation with protesters has gone viral after he was seen attempting to reason with people destroying property in Wauwatosa in the aftermath of the Milwaukee County District Attorney's decision not to charge Joseph Mensah in the death of 17-year-old Alvin Cole.

The protests weren't alarming to Jason Fritz, a Milwaukee resident who lives along the Wauwatosa border. There were several peaceful protests in Fritz's neighborhood over the summer. He and his wife would usually put their two sons to bed, lock the doors and pull down the shades. They would often hear the noise but would tune it out.

Wednesday night was different.

Fritz told Patch he noticed the headlights and sirens from down the street diverting people into his neighborhood. He peaked out the window and noticed people in his yard congregating. At first, Fritz wasn't overly worried but did notice there was more aggression than the last protest.

"I didn't realize the extent of the destruction on North Avenue and that other homes had been vandalized at that point," he said.

As the protests surrounding the Mensah decision stretched into the night, police said large rocks were thrown at law enforcement and buildings in the area of Swan Boulevard and North Avenue. Residents were told to shelter inside their homes and lock their doors. A curfew (from 7 p.m.-6 a.m.) remains in effect in Wauwatosa until Monday.

Fritz said noticed a man riding on a motorcycle in his yard and then the man looked into Fritz's window. The man appeared to be mocking and taunting the homeowner.

"Internally I flew into a rage," Fritz said.

Fritz, a gun owner, has a CCW permit and he admits the thought of grabbing the gun entered his mind. He thought about Kyle Rittenhouse – the Illinois teen accused of killing two protesters in Kensosha and injuring a third — and Mark and Patricia McCloskey from St. Louis who were on video displaying guns while protesters went past their home.

He told Patch normally viral videos never end well.

"I told my wife, I'm not going to be the next viral video," Fritz said.

'Get Off My Lawn'

What happened next was a culmination of the shutdown, virtual schooling and Fritz's engineering business being seriously impacted by the pandemic. He said the coronavirus decimated his business and caused financial challenges.

"Now there is this guy in my yard and it was like the final straw," he said.

Fritz ran outside and started yelling at the man to get off his lawn. In retrospect, Fritz joked at being shocked he turned into a "get off my lawn" kind of guy.

The man kept riding around his yard and members of the man's group noticed Fritz was visibly upset. About 30 people were directly facing him.

"There were people, who I call the cellphone brigade, trying to goat mock and incite me into doing or saying something," he said.

Fritz said in that instant he realized he would calmly try reasoning with the group. Someone nearby started recorded the confrontation.

"You don't even know who in this neighborhood supports what you're doing and doesn't, and you're going in my yard," said Fritz in the video.

He told the group there are Black Lives Matter signs up and down the street. Fritz said he knows there are also Biden/Harris signs displayed. He was thinking about how the group was destroying the property of the people who actually support their cause. He also thought about how the group needed those people to exact some change.

"Do you know how many Democrats, MPS teachers, union members other people that could support you live on this street, and you're going to let him ride through my yard!?" he said in the video.

Fritz told Patch he is a lifelong conservative Republican. While Fritz believes in the second amendment and protecting his family, he felt there was still a chance to get out of the confrontation without things getting violent.

Fritz's words seemed to resonate with a few people and the tone of the crowd changed.

"The agitators of the group seemed to get bored of me acting reasonable and logical. I was no longer flying off the handle. Someone in the video said let's just go." he said.

A 'Starting Point'

A few of the people who acted receptive to him lingered and had a conversation with Fritz.

"If our only starting point is one side is calling you criminals and thugs and the other side is saying you are white racist devils, we are not at a starting point," he said.

Fritz added if violence, destruction, and looting is ceased, there are reasonable reforms that could allow changes in systemic racism, police reform and other causes people are fighting for.

He explained it doesn't matter if someone is a Republican, Democrat, Black or white. If you are a homeowner or rent an apartment. Fritz said an outsider might see a white person in a big house but what they don't see is a family who is still recovering financially from a house fire.

"All that identify politics, if we just put that aside for a second and realize we have more in common than what drives us apart. We can start to heal our community here," Fritz said.

'Tired of 2020'

Fritz has heard from people who applauded him for standing up to destruction by saying "enough is enough."

He was amused people on social media were unsure if he is a Democrat or a Republican. Fritz said he must have struck a good balance down the middle. He told Patch he understands the district attorney's decision for not charging Mensah but also is sympathetic to the Cole family.

Fritz added he also understands the outrage over Breonna Taylor, a Black woman who was shot and killed by Louisville police officers in March. Those types of incidents are playing out all over the country, he said.

"There are people who are invested in politics and media and are keeping us at each other's throats. They are making sure we are mad all the time," Fritz said.

He questioned how everyone seemed to agree George Floyd's death was horrible and shouldn't have happened to now being divided on the topic.

He told Patch people are just tired of 2020 and he is tired of being mad.

"I want to find the people in the community who want to have a conversation," Fritz said.