Grammy-nominated artist Tauren Wells says the debate over Harrison Butker’s beliefs revealed that conservative views often are the only ones rejected in a world that preaches tolerance.
Wells made the comments last week prior to the K-Love Fan Awards, elaborating on an Instagram post from mid-May that declared, “We are to be tolerant of every perspective except a conservative one.” Wells’ post came shortly after Butker—the placekicker for the Kansas City Chiefs—delivered a commencement speech at a Catholic university, where the NFL star defended traditional beliefs on gender. Butker faced backlash from multiple segments of society.
“The Harrison Butker speech kind of created a cultural moment that had already been simmering under the surface,” Wells told Crosswalk Headlines.
Wells’ Instagram post, he said, was a commentary on society’s lack of tolerance and not directed specifically toward Butker’s speech.
“It was really just a general statement that I believe everyone's voice matters,” Wells said. “And if we're going to actually be inclusive, then everyone gets to share their perspective.”
On Instagram, Wells added, “We’ve made a cultural idol out of ‘my truth,’ sacrificing true love and common logic at its altar and worshipping in the shrine of selective reality.”
“Anyone choosing to decline membership gets put in a public timeout by the media and purchased pundits,” he wrote on Instagram. “The hypocrisy of the inclusivity bandwagon to reject ONLY views that don’t align with their own is truly perplexing. I just don’t get it.”
Wells’ comments sparked a debate on his timeline.
“Anything that promotes biblical views of marriage, gender, or morality is being wildly attacked,” one person wrote. “Stand firm. God's ways are not always popular.”
Another fan wrote: “[Butker] is absolutely allowed to have his beliefs, but it was the wrong time and place.”
Wells was nominated for Male Artist of the Year at this year’s K-Love Fan Awards.
Photo Credit: © Jason Davis for K-LOVE Fan Awards
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.