Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker is facing backlash after his controversial commencement speech on May 11 for Benedictine College’s graduating class in Atchison, Kansas.
His speech included comments about gender roles and the LGBTQ+ community, and his remarks even singled out female graduates, stating:
“For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment. You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives. I want to speak directly to you briefly because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you.”
“Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world,” he continued.
The 28-year-old football player then proceed to claim that his wife Isabelle Butker would be the “first to say that her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother.” He also went on to say that being a “homemaker” is “one of the most important titles of all.”
Butker also noted that men should “be unapologetic in your masculinity, fighting against the culture of the emasculation of men,” and adding that men “set the tone of the culture.” Somewhere along his 20-minute speech, he described LGBTQ+ community’s Pride month as a “deadly sin.”
The athlete praised “the true God-centered pride that is cooperation with the Holy Ghost to glorify him” rather than “the deadly sins sort of Pride that has an entire month dedicated to it.”
Meanwhile, a lot of celebrities reacted to Butker’s close-minded and discriminatory speech. Singer Maren Morris wrote on her Instagram Story:
“I choose the bear,” referring to a trend where women choose whether they would rather encounter a bear or a man alone in the woods.
Rapper Flavor Flav tweeted:
Sounds like some players “need to stay in their lanes” and shouldn’t be giving commencement speeches.
— FLAVOR FLAV (@FlavorFlav) May 14, 2024
Former Kansas City commissioner Justice Horn also wrote via Twitter:
Harrison Butker doesn’t represent Kansas City nor has he ever. Kansas City has always been a place that welcomes, affirms, and embraces our LGBTQ+ community members. 🌈 pic.twitter.com/4vZ14SXgb6
— Justice Horn (@JusticeHorn_) May 14, 2024
Sources: usmagazine.com, abcnews.go.com
