NFL Criticizes Harrison Butker’s Commencement Speech Following Chiefs Kicker’s Delivery of Religious Message – One America News Network
OAN’s James Meyers
8:41 AM – Thursday, May 16, 2024
The NFL has condemned Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s speech he gave during a commencement address at a private college in Kansas over the weekend.
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During the speech, Butker encouraged women to embrace their “vocation” as a “homemaker” and was critical of the LGBTQ community and President Joe Biden for his abortion policies.
The Chiefs kicker has received backlash on social media for his comments during the almost 20-minute speech he gave at Benedictine College over the weekend.
The NFL said in a statement to People magazine that Butker spoke from a “personal capacity” and reiterated the league’s stance on inclusion.
“Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity,” Jonathan Beane, the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, told the outlet. “His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”
The three-time Super Bowl champion encouraged women to embrace what he called the “most important titles of all” as a Catholic.
“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,” he said. “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. How many of you are sitting here now, about to cross this stage, and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career? 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.
“I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother. I’m on this stage today and able to be the man that I am because I have a wife who leans into her vocation. I’m beyond blessed with the many talents God has given me, but it cannot be overstated that all of my success is made possible because a girl I met in band class back in middle school would convert to the faith, become my wife and embrace one of the most important titles of all: homemaker.”
Furthermore, Butker was highly critical of Pride month, claiming it’s a “deadly sin sort of pride that has a month dedicated to it,” and specifically pointed to Biden’s “delusional” stance on abortion.
“He has been so vocal in his support for the murder of innocent babies that I’m sure to many people it appears that you can be both Catholic and pro-choice,” he said, via OutKick.
“He is not alone. From the man behind the COVID lockdowns, to the people pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America, they all have a glaring thing in common — they are Catholic. This is an important reminder that being Catholic alone doesn’t cut it.”
Meanwhile, the Chiefs have not commented on Butker’s speech.
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