Karma seems to have finally come for Harrison Butker after his bigoted commencement speech at Benedictine College, as he was publicly called out at the ESPY Awards.
Butker, a kicker for the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, went viral in May after he gave a commencement speech to the graduating class at Benedictine College. Instead of using his speech as a chance to inspire and encourage, he used it to express his hateful views as he attacked the LGBTQ+ community and women. He shamed the graduating women in the audience by telling them they needed to stay in their lanes and become mothers and wives. Butker minimized their accomplishments as he insisted their lives would only start and be fulfilling when they got married and had children. At least one woman present at the speech spoke out about how awful the experience was and how it made her graduation day less special.
Butker has refused to take back his comments or even acknowledge that a commencement speech wasn’t the place to talk about his bigoted views about women. Meanwhile, he has been relishing the praise from conservatives and fellow misogynists while painting himself as a brave, courageous hero for shaming women on their graduation day. He also faced no consequences from the NFL for using his platform to spread bigotry. So, it wasn’t surprising when he showed up at the ESPYS, smiling smugly for the camera and waving his Super Bowl ring around. Fortunately, he didn’t make it through the night without being roasted.
The Williams sisters shade Harrison Butker
This year, tennis legend Serena Williams was chosen to host the 32nd annual ESPY Awards. During the ceremony, she took the time to highlight the importance of women’s sports with her fellow tennis legend sister, Venus Williams, and Abbott Elementary star Quinta Brunson. At one point, Venus commented, “Go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports because they are sports.”
“Except you, Harrison Butker. We don’t need you,” Serena quipped. Brunson echoed that sentiment, adding, “At all. Like, ever.”
The best part of that comment was that Butker definitely heard it, as he attended the ESPY Awards to support the three nominations that the Chiefs received. He also definitely heard the outbreak of cheers and applause that the callout generated, similar to how the women at Benedictine College had to endure the standing ovation Butker’s disgusting speech garnered. Unfortunately, the camera didn’t turn to him to get his reaction, but one can hope that he felt embarrassed as all eyes turned to him after he was publicly roasted by three women who are more successful and famous than he could ever dream of being.
It’s the perfect retribution as it gives him a tiny taste of what it’s like to be celebrating your achievements and have someone call you out. Of course, the major difference is that he actually deserved the callout, unlike the dozens of graduating women he shamed for no reason other than his bigotry. If he’s going to get up on a stage and tell women to stay in their lane, then he should be prepared for women to clap back. Women like the Williams sisters are going to remind him he’s the one who needs to stay in his own lane and stay out of women’s business because they literally don’t need him. They don’t need his opinions, support, or presence whatsoever because they’ll keep succeeding regardless of what an inconsequential football player thinks.
Given how many people have defended Butker, we can only hope more awards show hosts and public speakers follow the Williams sisters and Brunson’s lead. The women whose graduation he ruined will never get that special day back, but they may get some form of justice as other women refuse to allow Butker to celebrate his career without reminding him of his actions.
Published: Jul 12, 2024 01:57 pm