Harrison Butker Faces Backlash After 'Misogynistic' Comments Telling Women To Become 'Homemakers'

Kansas City Chiefs player Harrison Butker, who is teammates with Travis Kelce, is under fire after he made a controversial graduation speech.

The NFL kicker spoke at Benedictine College's graduation ceremony, but social media is not happy about what he said as Butker is now labeled as "misogynistic."

Not only did Butker say women should be "homemakers," but he also mentioned COVID-19, the LGBTQ community, and the relationship between Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift.

"It is safe to say that over the years, I have gained quite the reputation for speaking my mind," Butker began in his speech before discussing the global 2020 pandemic and how it "might have played a large role throughout your formative years; it is not unique."

He then claimed "bad policies and poor leadership" had "negatively impacted major life issues," seemingly bashing President Joe Biden. "Things like abortion, IVF, surrogacy, euthanasia, as well as a growing support for degenerative cultural values in media all stem from the pervasiveness of disorder," the NFL player added.

And then, he brought up the traditional gender roles between men and women.

"As my teammate's girlfriend says, 'familiarity breeds contempt,' " Butker said, referring to Taylor Swift, who is dating Travis Kelce. The lyric is from her hit single "Bejeweled."

Butker addressed "the ladies present today," congratulating them "on an amazing accomplishment."

"You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives," he continued. "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," the NFL player added.

"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," he said of his wife.

"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," Butker continued. "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."

After addressing the women, Butker told the men, "We set the tone of the culture, and when that is absent, disorder, dysfunction, and chaos set in."

"This absence of men in the home is what plays a large role in the violence we see all around the nation. Other countries do not have nearly the same absentee father rates as we find here in the U.S., and a correlation could be made in their drastically lower violence rates as well," Butker said. "Be unapologetic in your masculinity, fighting against the cultural emasculation of men. Do hard things. Never settle for what is easy. You might have a talent that you don't necessarily enjoy, but if it glorifies God, maybe you should lean into that over something that you might think suits you better."

Butker also mentioned the LGBTQ+ community, calling their pride "deadly sins."

After his speech went viral, several social media users bashed the NFL player, including former Kansas City commissioner Justice Horn. "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," he wrote.

Another user expressed, "Harrison Butker, a dude I had never heard of until today, did a bang-up job of becoming one of the most hated men in North America in the space of one 20-minute speech full of bigotry and misogyny. F-ck this guy. This is insane."

"Harrison Butker, I hope you miss every kick this season & you are hereby banished from the Swiftie-Chiefs Kingdom alliance," one user wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. "Disrespecting Pride Month and my trans friends? Nah, bro, we identify YOU and your hateful heart as the problem."

Harrison Butker's full speech can be heard here.