ESPN helps Williams sisters launch cheap shot at Harrison Butker during ESPYS

The world’s most progressive TV sports network continued its lurch to the left during an awards show with a scripted moment that took a cheap shot at Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker.

But a powerhouse women’s rights advocate came to Butker’s defense on social media.

Butker raised the ire of progressives earlier this year with a commencement speech at a Catholic college that suggested “a majority” of the women graduates, while excited about getting a degree, probably are more excited about being a wife and having a family in the future. 

During a segment that was calculated as a plea to treat women’s sports more seriously, ESPY Awards host Serena Williams was joined by her sister Venus Williams and “Abbott Elementary” star Quinta Brunson. 

In what most likely was a tasteless joke written by writers at ESPN, the trio took aim at Butker, who was present at the network’s branded awards show.  

“So, go ahead and enjoy women’s sports like you would any other sports, because they are sports,” said Venus.  

“Except you, Harrison Butker. We don’t need you,” added Serena.  

“At all. Like, ever,” quipped Brunson.  

The crowd at the awards show laughed a little nervously about the poorly delivered gag denigrating Butker’s pro-family speech, which went viral in May. 

“For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment,” Butker told the Catholic graduates. “You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives.  

“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 Williams sisters and Brunson also called out ESPN host Pat McAfee, who previously used bad judgment in deploying a five-letter pejorative to describe WNBA rookie Caitlin Clark. 

But the three clearly meant the comments aimed at McAfee – who was unnamed in the joke – in good humor.   

However, Butker’s comments received very different treatment in the sports world than McAfee, who is well known for being vulgar. 

The difference is in no small part due to ESPN’s leftward political coverage of sports, where vulgarity is the rule as long as it’s aimed at the right targets, such as Caitlin Clark or Harrison Butker. 

NFL fraternity boys, brothers Jason and Travis Kelce, who is Butker’s teammate, complained about Butker’s comments on their podcast, while also supporting his right to say what he believes. 

“I would say if my daughters listen to anybody tell them what to do, that they should be homemakers, then I failed as a dad. I don’t care who’s talking to them,” Jason said, according to YardBarker. 

YardBarker reported that Jason was subsequently savaged by one X (formerly Twitter) user. 

“Your wife is a homemaker. But you can’t support Butker. And your wife is a homemaker whose home is a mess. Sorry but it is dirty and messy on television. Seems you’re a bit hypocritical,” said the user.  

X users were no more forgiving of the Williams sisters and ESPN for attacking Butker at the ESPY Awards, which was billed by one popular podcaster as a “celebration of women’s sports.”

One user included a screenshot from ESPN about the ESPY Awards and said he couldn’t reconcile the stated purpose of the awards with what he saw on the show.  

“I fail to see how (1) inviting Harrison Butker to this event, and (2) bringing up his comments help commemorate (definition: show respect for) the year that was in sports,” he wrote.  

Another user blasted the tennis stars for not taking a more aggressive stand about transgendered men competing against women in sports.  

“Have the Williams sisters spoken out against men competing in women’s sports yet? You remember that time that chap ranked outside the top 200 thrashed the pair of them. So they have first hand experience. Time to step up ladies,” said the user.  

Serena has said that she wouldn’t want to play against men in tennis, because men are bigger and stronger.  

But former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines, who has lobbied against transgender participation in women’s sports, blasted both sisters’ criticism of Butker, while noting that they have largely been quiet about the current crisis in women’s sports. 

“Just a reminder that these women have stayed SILENT about a 6’4″ less-than-mediocre man stealing an NCAA title from a deserving woman,” said Gaines, in reference to Lia Thomas, the transgender NCAA swimmer who won awards competing against biological females. “But God forbid a devout Catholic share a Catholic message to Catholic students at a Catholic university.”