Current:Home > MyKelly Stafford, Wife of NFL's Matthew Stanford, Weighs in on Harrison Butker Controversy-LoTradeCoin
Kelly Stafford, Wife of NFL's Matthew Stanford, Weighs in on Harrison Butker Controversy
View Date:2024-12-24 00:43:02
Kelly Stafford, the wife of Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, has joined the chat about Harrison Butker's controversial commencement speech.
The Kansas City Chiefs kicker has sparked mixed reactions over his remarks at Benedictine College, a Catholic college in Atchison, Kan. May 11, in which he said most female graduates would be "most excited" about marriage and motherhood and spoke about against topics such as abortion and IVF. Five days later, Kelly, who shares four daughters with Matthew and is both a self-proclaimed "homemaker" and a podcast co-host, shared her thoughts on Harrison's speech.
"Building men up and not tearing them down is important. Building women and not tearing them down is important," she wrote on Instagram. "Everyone has a choice of what they want his/her life to look like...it's not up to anyone else or society. The more society tells women where they belong, the more imposter syndrome starts to creep in, that they don't belong because that's what society is telling them."
She continued, "I'm happy and I thrive at home with being the homemaker, but that's not every woman's story nor should it have to be. Some women choose not to stay home and some women don't have the luxury to choose. We all might not agree on everything, but I think we all want the same end goal, a better world for our kids. I think supporting and encouraging women and men in whatever roles they choose is a great first step towards that goal."
Harrison, 28, has not responded publicly to the backlash over his speech. Meanwhile, the NFL issued their own response amid the controversy.
"Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity," the league's senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer Jonathan Beane said in a statement to People. "His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger."
In his speech, Butker said he thought female students had been told "diabolical lies," adding, "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."
He continued, "I can tell you that my beautiful wife, Isabelle, would be the first to say that her life truly started when she began living her vocation as a wife and as a mother."
To the male students, Harrison said, "Be unapologetic in your masculinity, fighting against the cultural emasculation of men."
The athlete also said in his speech that "things like abortion, IVF, surrogacy, euthanasia, as well as a growing support for degenerate cultural values in media, all stem from the pervasiveness of disorder."
Later, in an unrelated part of the speech, Harrison referenced the lyric "familiarity breeds contempt" from Taylor Swift's 2022 song "Bejeweled" after referring to her solely as his "teammate's girlfriend."
The track from the 14-time Grammy winner, who has been dating Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce since last summer, has a female empowerment theme, with the preceding lyrics being, "Best believe I'm still bejeweled / When I walk in the room / I can still make the whole place shimmer / And when I meet the band / They ask, 'Do you have a man?' / I could still say, 'I don't remember.'
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (1)
Related
- What is ‘Doge’? Explaining the meme and cryptocurrency after Elon Musk's appointment to D.O.G.E.
- Sorry Ladies, 2024 Olympian Stephen Nedoroscik Is Taken. Meet His Gymnast Girlfriend Tess McCracken
- William Calley, who led the My Lai massacre that shamed US military in Vietnam, has died
- ACOTAR TV Show Update Will Have Book Fans Feeling Thorny
- Businesses at struggling corner where George Floyd was killed sue Minneapolis
- Sheriff in charge of deputy who killed Sonya Massey declines to resign, asks for forgiveness
- Olympics 2024: Men's Triathlon Postponed Due to Unsafe Levels of Fecal Matter in Seine River
- Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's Daughter Sunday Rose, 16, Looks All Grown Up in Rare Red Carpet Photo
- Charles Hanover: A Summary of the UK Stock Market in 2023
- What to watch for the Paris Olympics: Simone Biles leads US in gymnastics final Tuesday, July 30
Ranking
- 2 dead in explosion at Kentucky factory that also damaged surrounding neighborhood
- U.S. job openings fall slightly to 8.2 million as high interest rates continue to cool labor market
- Orioles pay pretty penny for Trevor Rogers in MLB trade deadline deal with Marlins
- Redemption tour for USA men's volleyball off to a good start at Paris Olympics
- When does 'Dune: Prophecy' come out? Release date, cast, where to watch prequel series
- RHOC Preview: What Really Led to Heather Dubrow and Katie Ginella's Explosive Fight
- Mississippi won’t prosecute a deputy who killed a man yelling ‘shoot me’
- 2024 Olympics: Gymnast Aly Raisman Defends Jade Carey After Her Fall at Paris Games
Recommendation
-
Judge recuses himself in Arizona fake elector case after urging response to attacks on Kamala Harris
-
New Details on Sinéad O'Connor's Official Cause of Death Revealed
-
‘Vance Profits, We Pay The Price’: Sunrise Movement Protests J.D. Vance Over Billionaire Influence and Calls on Kamala Harris to Take Climate Action
-
Sheriff in charge of deputy who killed Sonya Massey declines to resign, asks for forgiveness
-
Fighting conspiracy theories with comedy? That’s what the Onion hopes after its purchase of Infowars
-
Terrell Davis says United banned him after flight incident. Airline says it was already rescinded
-
Banks want your voice data for extra security protection. Don't do it!
-
2024 Olympics: Colin Jost Shares Photo of Injured Foot After Surfing Event in Tahiti