Whoopi Goldberg defended Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker who says women should be homemakers and stay-at-home moms.
Goldberg said Butker is entitled to his Catholic beliefs.
“You know, listen, I like when people say what they say. He is a staunch Catholic, these are his beliefs and he’s welcome to them,” she said on Thursday.
“I don’t have to believe them, I don’t have to accept them, the ladies in the audience do not have to accept them. The same way we want respect when Colin Kaepernick takes a knee, we want to give respect to people whose ideas are different from ours.”
She continued: “So I’m okay with [Butker] saying whatever he says and the women who were sitting there, if they take his advice, good for them, they’ll be happy. If they don’t, good for them, they’ll be happy in a different way – that’s my attitude.’
Butker gave a controversial commencement speech on May 11 at Benedictine College, a Christian college in Kansas.
The NFL kicker raised eyebrows when he said a woman’s rightful place is to be married and a stay-at-home mom.
“I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolic lies told to you,” Butker said.
“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 told the graduates.
Butker praised his high school sweetheart, Isabelle, who became his wife and mother to his 2 children.
“I can tell you that my beautiful wife Isabelle would be the first to say her life truly started when she started living her vocation as a wife and as a mother. I’m on this stage today, 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, but it cannot be overstated that all 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.”
Butker has won three Super Bowl championships with the Chiefs. He kicked the Super Bowl-winning field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023.
A Change.org petition has raised over 120,000 signatures urging the Chiefs to fire their kicker.
The NFL responded to the controversy after days of silence.
“His views are not those of the NFL as an organization,” said Jonathan Beane, the senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer at the NFL.
“The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”
Butker made similar statements during a commencement speech in 2023.
