Serena Williams blasted Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, saying women “don’t need” him as he addressed Pride Month, careers in May graduation speech A controversial attack on women and abortion rights.
The 23-time tennis Grand Slam winner was joined by her sisters Venus Williams (a seven-time tennis Grand Slam winner) and Ella at the Espy Awards on Thursday. Burt Elementary actor Quinta Brunson.
Venus Williams ended the show by urging viewers to “continue to enjoy women’s sports like you enjoy other sports – because they are sports”.
Williams then interjected: “Except for you, Harrison Butker. We don’t need you.
With Butker in attendance, Brunson added: “No matter what, it’s just like before.”
Butker has been widely criticized — except by adherents on the right wing of American politics — for his May 11 commencement address at Benedictine College, a private Catholic liberal arts college in Atchison, Kansas. He views Pride Month, which celebrates LGBTQ+ achievements every June, as a “mortal sin” and believes some Catholic leaders are “forcing dangerous gender ideologies on America’s young people.”
During his roughly 20-minute speech, the three-time Super Bowl champion also claimed that the “most important” role women have is that of homemaker.
“Some of you may go on to have successful careers in the world,” Butker said to the female graduates. “But I would hazard a guess that most of you are concerned about your marriages and the children you will bring into the world. Most excited.
Butker also said that despite the U.S. Supreme Court striking down the national right to abortion in June 2022, the majority of Americans still favor abortion, which is caused by “widespread confusion.”
The 28-year-old’s comments sparked a backlash, prompting the NFL to issue a statement distancing itself from his remarks, saying they went against the league’s “commitment to inclusion.”
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Butker’s superstar teammates, Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes, have publicly stated that they disagree with his sentiments.
The seat-stealer later said he had some regrets about expressing his views, saying: “If it wasn’t obvious that timeless Catholic values are hated by many, it would be now.”
Still, American conservatives rallied around Butker in the wake of his speech, helping his jersey become one of the best-selling jerseys on NFL.com.
