![Prince Harry Pat Tillman]()
Peculiar choices being made here...
On its own merits, honoring a royal family figurehead from another country with an ESPY Award named after a fallen American soldier is odd in and of itself. To arrive at such a decision without at least a conversation with Pat Tillman's mother? Makes the whole saga even stranger.
It's great that Prince Harry is taking the initiative, using his massive cultural influence and personal affluence to help veterans. Lord knows vets deserve the world and more for keeping all of us safe, yet the USA and myriad other countries often fail them as they try to readjust to civilian life.
Prince Harry's big contribution that merited the Pat Tillman Award for Service in the eyes of ESPY voters was starting the Invictus Games a decade ago, which gives injured service members the chance to participate in an Olympics-style athletic competition. Commendable as that is, Mary Tillman is miffed as to why others with less means to, say... start their own veteran Olympics, aren't under consideration (via the
Daily Mail):
"I am shocked as to why they would select such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award. There are recipients that are far more fitting. There are individuals working in the veteran community that are doing tremendous things to assist veterans.
These individuals do not have the money, resources, connections or privilege that Prince Harry has. I feel that those types of individuals should be [recognized]."
https://twitter.com/TODAYshow/status/1807788243749933381
Pat Tillman played four seasons in the NFL for the Arizona Cardinals before leaving to serve in the War in Afghanistan and Iraq War for the US Army. He died in April 2004 due to friendly fire in a tragedy that still has so many questions about it to this day, more than 20 years later.
The juxtaposition between who the ESPYs presented the Tillman Award to in 2023 and their decision to give it to Prince Harry this time around is rather jarring.
https://twitter.com/BuffaloBills/status/1679309856249901066
I'm not saying that Prince Harry doesn't deserve applause for his philanthropic efforts. It's just that maybe a different accolade is more fitting for him than one that invokes Pat Tillman's name. The award hasn't historically gone to super high-profile public figures like The Duke of Sussex. Doesn't Prince Harry get enough flowers?
And for a distinguished decoration that invokes an armed forces serviceman who gave his life for his country, something about giving it to a literal monarch feels off.
Maybe the ESPYs should listen to Mary Tillman and reconsider, no matter who was involved in arriving at this decision.
