Petition against Prince Harry being handed ESPY Award garners over 30,000 signatures

Over 30,000 people have signed a petition against Prince Harry being handed the award in honour of an American war hero. It was recently announced that the Duke of Sussex would be honoured at the 2024 ESPY Awards, a ceremony helmed by ESPN that pays tribute to athletes and sports figures.

Harry is set to get the Pat Tillman Award for his work with the Invictus Games, ESPN announced. The ESPY Award was named after footballer Pat Tillman, who famously gave up his career in sports to serve in the military after 9/11. He was later killed in Afghanistan.

The recent Change.org petition calls for ESPN to “rethink awarding the Pat Tillman Award to Prince Harry.” Patti Mickel, who created the petition, wrote that the award should be representative of Tillman’s values and “should honor someone who, like Tillman, has shown unwavering dedication to their squad and country.”

Harry was reportedly chosen for the honour because of how he tried to use sports to “change the world and make it more inclusive for marginalised and suffering communities.” The petition reads, “Prince Harry, while a former military officer, has been involved in controversies that call into question his suitability to receive an honour of this magnitude.”

“He has faced accusations of endangering his squadron by publicly revealing military kills,” it adds. The petition also says, “More recently, his role in the Invictus games, a platform meant to celebrate the resilience and dedication of veterans, has been criticised as self-centered.”

Drawing a contrast, the petition states, “Pat Tillman exemplified duty, honor, and sacrifice. He gave up his successful NFL career to serve his country after the 9/11 attacks, and tragically lost his life during his service. Awarding this honor to someone who does not reflect the award's intent diminishes its value and disrespects Tillman's memory.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle blasted as ‘divisive and unpopular’

Meanwhile, Nile Gardiner, director of The Heritage Foundation, has claimed that the controversy around Harry's latest award "shows how divisive and unpopular Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are.”

"Harry and Meghan's narcissism does not go down very well in the United States and most American people really love the Royal Family,” Gardiner told GB News. "And they do not look kindly upon Harry and Meghan basically trashing the royal family in the United States and does not go down very well.”

"They're very divisive figures, and this award is very, very controversial. There's a huge backlash in the United States, and it's an illustration of just how unpopular Harry and Meghan are on both sides of the Atlantic,” Gardiner added.