The judge presiding over the trial of 18-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse made a joke about Asian food during court proceedings on Thursday and many are calling his behavior “racist.”  

“I hope the Asian food isn’t coming,” Judge Bruce Schroeder said in the courtroom as everyone prepared to break for lunch. “Isn’t [it] on one of those boats from Long Beach Harbor?” 

According to CNN, Schroeder is the longest-serving active judge in Wisconsin’s trial courts. Members of the Asian American community reacted to Schroeder’s comments, alleging racism.  

John Yang, the president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC), said, “It harms our community and puts us in the crosshairs of micro aggressions as well as actual physical violence.”  

This comes as the Asian American Pacific Islander community has seen an uptick in violent rhetoric and hate crimes stemming from ignorance and inaccurate blame placed on them for COVID-19.  

RELATED: Juror in Kyle Rittenhouse Trial Dismissed for Jacob Blake Shooting Joke 

In March 2020, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Asian Pacific Planning and Policy Council (A3PCON), Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), and the Asian American Studies Department of San Francisco State University launched the Stop AAPI Hate reporting center. 

A national report released by the group revealed more than 3,000 incidents were reported, including cases of verbal harassment, shunning, physical assault, civil rights violations and online harassment. Additionally, research released by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism revealed hate crimes targeting Asian people rose by nearly 150 %. 

RELATED: Stop Asian Hate: Atlanta Shootings Igniting Renewed Calls to End Violence 

Yang said any Asian American that sees or hears the judge’s comments “will understand that he is making fun of or mocking our community.” He also said the judge’s words show “how Asian Americans are not immune from racial bias and discrimination in our criminal justice system.”  

RELATED: Kyle Rittenhouse Trial: Lawyers Can’t Call 2 People Killed ‘Victims’  

Schroeder also made headlines for ruling the people shot and killed by Rittenhouse could not be referred to as “victims” and for getting into heated exchanges with the prosecution.  

RELATED: Judge, Prosecutor Argue During Kyle Rittenhouse Trial 

Rittenhouse, who lives in Illinois, is on trial facing homicide charges relating to shooting three people and killing two of them during demonstrations protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.  

If you or someone you know is struggling from trauma triggered by this story, resources are available here.