Harrison Butker’s speech last weekend left some Benedictine College graduates outraged after the Kansas City Chiefs kicker claimed that one of the “most important” roles for a woman is to be a homemaker and that Pride Month is an example of ‘deadly sin’.
In the six days since the speech, neither Butker, 28, nor the small Catholic school have publicly responded to the backlash — and graduates who attended the ceremony have been left to grapple with the fallout.
Kyra Misuraca, a 22-year-old graphic design major, said she was shocked that Butker used the speech to address gender roles instead of encouraging her and other graduating women to follow their dreams.
“My jaw dropped at one point,” says another student, 21-year-old Susannah Leisegang, who also graduated as a graphic designer. “It was just really awkward, and I was looking back and forth at some of my friends and we were like, this is just not the time or place for this at all.”
Mary Aaker, who graduated from Benedictine studies in 2019, said Butker’s comments were “disheartening.”
“That all came down to, ‘I bet you’re most excited to go out and start a family,'” she said on NBC’s TODAY show.
Butker used the speech to rail against President Joe Biden, abortion, IVF and the response to Covid-19. At one point, while criticizing a media report mentioning the university, he said that students at the school “felt excitement and pride. Not the kind of pride of mortal sin to which an entire month is dedicated, but the true, God-centered pride that works with the Holy Spirit to glorify Him.”
About twelve minutes into the speech, Butker addressed the graduating women directly, saying they had been told “the most diabolical lies.”
“How many of you are sitting here right now, about to cross this stage, and thinking about all the promotions and titles you’re going to achieve in your career? Some of you may go on to 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.”
Butker touted his own success, attributing it to his wife, who he said had converted to Catholicism, married him and “embraced one of the most important titles of all: housewife,” he said.
The line drew applause, but Misuraca said all the women sitting around her audibly gasped.
“I was really annoyed that he said that to a bunch of women who are graduating with degrees in something they’re passionate about,” she said.
But for another student present, the outrage over the comment is misplaced. The student, who declined to be interviewed by phone but corresponded with NBC News via text message and social media, said he did not believe Butker’s comments should be interpreted as a message to female students that they should quit their jobs and become homemakers.
“Harrison said women should value the role of motherhood more than they care about their jobs,” he said.
“I don’t agree with everything he said, but it’s also very clear that anyone angry online hasn’t listened to the whole speech and is taking things out of context,” he added. “I think the response is ridiculous; he was invited to speak at our small Catholic university, where getting engaged/married immediately after university is a regular occurrence. He knew his audience and the people on Instagram and X shouldn’t be angry about something they weren’t the target audience for.
Misuraca disagreed with that description of the school. She said the university regularly recruits athletes — which she attended on a basketball scholarship — who are non-Catholic or “barely” Catholic.
“Obviously we come in knowing that it’s a Catholic school and we have a lot of Catholic beliefs and we’re not Catholic, so we can’t really say you’re wrong because that’s what you believe. she said. “You can’t really turn around and tell us what we believe.”
The Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, a founding member and sponsor of the college, said Butker’s comments were inaccurate. “represent the Catholic, Benedictine, liberal arts academy that our founders envisioned and in which we are so invested.”
“Rather than promoting unity in our church, country and world, his comments appear to have promoted division,” read an online statement.
At the end of Butker’s speech, there was applause and many in the crowd stood up.
But Misuraca said she remained seated and was booed. Leisegang was also booed. They both said they hoped school administrators would eventually confront graduates about the controversy.
Misuraca said an explanation would be appreciated, although she said it was ultimately Butker who gave the speech, not a school official. Leisegang continued, saying she wants an apology and that Butker’s speech had overshadowed the importance of the day.
“There were women walking across the stage with children in their hands, getting their diplomas,” she said. ‘And just to hear that – as if his wife could of course become a housewife. You are a millionaire. But that is not the reality for a large part of the country we live in.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
