Wife of Chiefs owner voices support for Harrison Butker’s speech Despite NFL planning to suspend him

TOPLINE Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker’s controversial commencement speech to the Benedictine College graduating class has drawn a mixed response from affiliates of his football team, with the wife of the team’s billionaire owner echoing his sentiments in an Instagram post.
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Harrison Butker’s speech to the Benedictine [+]
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KEY FACTS

Tavia Hunt, wife of the billionaire Kansas City Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt, echoed Butker’s speech—in which he suggested women may find more fulfillment as wives and mothers instead of in their careers—in an Instagram post, calling marriage and motherhood one of life’s “greatest blessings” and stating that affirming motherhood is “not bigoted.”

Gracie Hunt, the daughter of Tavia and Clark Hunt, said she respects “Harrison and his Christian faith” in an interview with Fox & Friends and praised her mother for staying home to care for her children.

Brooke Schwartz, the wife of Butker’s Chiefs teammate Mitch Schwartz, slammed the speech in a series of Instagram stories, calling it “gross and backwards” and questioning why Butker quoted a Taylor Swift song, noting that her political views differ from the sentiments in Butker’s speech.

Chris Jones, a defensive tackle for the Chiefs, tweeted in support of his teammate: “I love you @buttkicker7! My brotha.”

Former Chiefs cheerleader Stefanie Hill, who says her and Butker’s tenure with the team overlapped for six years, posted a three-minute TikTok video slamming his speech and accusing him of “failing” PR training and reflecting badly on the team.

The Chiefs have not publicly commented on Butker’s speech.

TANGENT

The NFL distanced itself from Butker’s speech on Thursday. Jonathan Beane, NFL senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, said in a statement that Butker spoke from a personal capacity, and “his views are not those of the NFL as an organization.”

KEY BACKGROUND

Butker spoke to the Benedictine College Class of 2024 last week and quickly drew backlash for his controversial comments on women in the workforce, Pride Month and President Joe Biden. Butker said the “majority” of the women in the graduating class are likely more excited to become wives and mothers rather than focusing on their careers. He spoke at length about politics, slamming Biden as “delusional” for being Catholic while supporting abortion rights. He criticized “abortion, IVF, surrogacy, euthanasia” and “degenerate cultural values,” blaming the “pervasiveness of disorder” and poor leadership. He also made several anti-LGBTQ comments: He accused people of “pushing dangerous gender ideologies onto the youth of America” and took a shot at Pride Month, calling it a month dedicated to a “deadly sin.” He also notably quoted a Taylor Swift song, “Bejeweled,” while criticizing priests for becoming overly familiar with their parishioners: “As my teammate’s girlfriend says, ‘familiarity breeds contempt,’” Butker said, referring to Swift’s relationship with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

SURPRISING FACT

A Change.org petition demanding that the Chiefs dismiss Butker has garnered more than 180,000 signatures as public backlash over his speech grows.