Maria Shriver and a host of other celebrities have criticized Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker for his controversial comments during a college commencement speech.
Butker, the Chiefs’ kicker since 2017, suggested that female Benedictine College graduates were “the most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world,” and also said men “set the tone of the culture ‘.
These comments have been widely reported, and on Tuesday, California’s former First Lady Shriver agreed.
“As a woman who has joined my calling to live a meaningful life both within and outside the family, to not only raise good people but also improve our country in various ways, I believe that “It is demeaning to women to suggest that their choices outside of wifehood and motherhood pale in comparison to those of a housewife,” she wrote in an statement posted on X.
“I am happy for Mr. Butker’s wife, Isabelle, that she is happy in her chosen vocation. Good for her. But she needs to let her husband know that not all women can make that choice, even if they want to. Most families cannot make ends meet without both parents working. It’s a luxury to be given the choice she was given.”
Maria Shriver blasted Harrison Butker for his recent comments during a speech
Harrison Butker made several sexist comments during a speech at Benedictine College last week
Shriver also commented on Butker’s claim that men set “the tone of the culture.”
‘Women, men, gays, straights – of course we can! “I won’t tell Mr Butker to stick to his guns, but I would suggest that next time he talks to women first and listens to someone who has a clearer view of where most women are in 2024,” said she.
Shriver’s position was shared by many others, as former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III said X, ‘Women can be bad CEOs. Women can be bad doctors. Women can be bad lawyers.
‘Women can be bad mothers. Women can do whatever they want. It is their right to choose what they want to become.”
With Hoda & Jenna, hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager also got involved in the conversation today.
‘Who is [Harrison] tell us?’ Bush Hager asked.
Robert Griffin III, a former QB for Washington and Baltimore, also responded to Butker’s comments
Butker said his wife Isabelle’s life “really started” when she got married and had children
Whoopi Goldberg, meanwhile, defended Harrison Butker’s controversial speech
Kotb said, “Don’t speak for us. I think that’s one of those things. Stop speaking for women.”
Justice Horn, the former Kansas City commissioner who also chaired the Kansas City LGBTQ Commission from 2021 to this year, added on X“Harrison Butker does not represent Kansas City, and never has. Kansas City has always been a place where our LGBTQ+ community members are welcomed, affirmed and embraced.”
However, there is at least one prominent celebrity who has defended Butker’s comments: Whoopi Goldberg.
“He goes to a Catholic college, he’s a fervent Catholic,” she said on The View. “These are his beliefs and he welcomes them. I don’t have to believe them. I don’t have to accept them. The ladies who were in that audience don’t have to accept them.’
During his speech to Benedictine students, Butker said: “I think it is you, the women, who have been told the most devilish lies. Some of you may have successful careers in the world, but I would hazard a 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 that her life truly began when she began living her calling as a wife and as a mother. I stand on this stage today and can be the man I am because I have a wife who focuses on her calling.
“I am beyond blessed with the many talents God has given me, but it cannot be overstated that all of my success has been made possible because a girl I met in band class in high school would convert to the faith , would become my wife and embrace one of the most important titles of all: housewife,” Butker concluded.
He also urged men to “fight against cultural emasculation.”