When Harrison Butker stepped on stage at Benedictine College to give a commencement speech to the class that was graduating, he knew what he was doing. But the controversy has exploded across America, dividing us once again and opening up our ongoing debate about Freedom of Speech.
Here is a Catholic man giving a speech to a Catholic college and talking about their beliefs. Of course, the world is listening and everything is up for commentary. It always has been. In fact, that’s the other side of this two-edged sword. Freedom of Speech does indeed go both ways. If you can dish it out, you better be ready to take it. But there have been some ridiculous actions to this saga and they need to be called out.
First of all, I want to say that I get this TikToker who was in attendance. She is a graduate who heard Butker’s speech first hand and she was not happy with it. This is not one of those ridiculous things that need to be pointed out. This is actually how Freedom of Speech works. If you don’t like something, speak up about it. There will always be people on your side who agree with you and will give you the time of day to listen.
It is in the interest of what she had to say though that I would like to point out that the college she just graduated from is a Catholic college. I’m sure she knew that going into Freshman year. In its Mission Statement, Benedictine College states, “As a Catholic college, Benedictine College is committed to those beliefs and natural principles that form the framework of the Judeo-Christian tradition.”
Having said that, I think it’s important to point out that it doesn’t seem to be a requirement of the college that all students be Catholic, “The college embraces students and faculty from all faiths who accept its goals, seeking in its members a personal commitment to the ideals and principles of a spiritual life and the expression of these in worship and action.”
So, a student doesn’t have to be Catholic to attend. But I’m quite sure that in the years spent there to get a degree, every student learns what the college’s beliefs and principles are. Harrison Butker’s commencement speech would not have been the first time hearing these things. I know that graduation is supposed to be a special day and having your day ruined by a commencement speech can put a damper on the whole experience. I hate that she’ll have a bad memory of it but it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when these beliefs and principles had been shared with her all along.
After seeing memes spawn on Facebook like this hilarious one, I realized that it’s as if so many of the people who were triggered by his commencement speech have no idea what Harrison Butker really said. Of course, people don’t always have enough time to catch every little thing going on in the world. So, they rely on what they consider to be credible sources to fill them in on the details. Unfortunately, those aren’t always reliable.
AP does a great job of glossing over different views of the speech from a lady in the audience who liked it to a lady in the audience who wasn’t too happy about it as well as the criticism nuns had for it. PinkNews went a bit further and pointed out all the statements that the LGBTQ+ community as a whole might find issues with. What I liked about that article is it quoted Harrison Butker directly and discussed those statements honestly. It also didn’t have a call for action to have him fired or to sue him and have him sent off to a social awareness camp to be brainwashed into thinking their way. It simply says, here are the facts.
But this is ridiculous…
An actual petition exists to have the Chiefs fire him, calling his words “harmful” and “unacceptable.” I would like to point out that there are people on the right who find words and actions from people on the left “harmful” and “unacceptable.” Who wins that one? Who’s words are actually “harmful” and “unacceptable?”
If we’re all “harmful” and “unacceptable,” then we all need to be canceled. There will be no more commencement speeches, book readings, parades, protests, television programming of any sort, or anything at all, ever again. Stop talking to each other. It’s all too disturbing.
It’s either that or we all have Freedom of Speech. Harrison Butker can continue kicking for the Chiefs and living his life by his family values as well as giving speeches wherever he’s hired to do so. And everyone else will also enjoy those rights. Sound good?
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It’s either all or nothing. Because I refuse to sit back and let one side dictate how we’re all going to live and what is and is not acceptable in this world. One side does not get to say and have everything their way.
Why wouldn’t the White House still welcome Harrison Butker? If this administration has actually considered this action and it isn’t just CNN trying to push it, this reaches the epitome of what is not American. The president is the president of the entire country, not just the people who agree with him. To consider rescinding an invitation based on the fact that he was criticized in a speech shows very weak character, not the kind of character an American president should have.
This is the kind of behavior from a country that has a dictator who doesn’t like opposition. This is the kind of behavior that takes place in a country ruled by a tyrant who silences those who stand against him. This is not who we are as Americans.
We might disagree on what family values are and we all might be divided by a commencement speech given by a certain person to a certain group of people he thought believed just like he does, but we all still agree on some things. Deep down in our American values, we know that this isn’t a dictatorship run by a tyrant. This is a free country where we are allowed to believe as we wish and the president of the United States is obligated to take company even with those who disagree with him. How else is he supposed to make an informed decision if he doesn’t hear what the opposition has to say?
But enough about me! Here’s Whoopi Goldberg to back me up…
