Steelers linebacker James Harrison to return sons’ ‘participation trophies’

James Harrison is absolutely right to be opposed to participation trophies, and we should stop pretending that they serve any valuable objective. Harrison’s kids got the trophies last week.

They didn’t give Harrison a trophy for grammar and punctuation back in the day, apparently. Whether it’s on the field or keeping in shape during the off-season, he believes that everything in life should be earned.

James Harrison is a fierce competitor who through low odds and the highest level of work has earned great accolades and a nice living for his family without ever settling for being middle of the road.

“I appreciate what you’re teaching your sons”, one fan yelled while he signed autographs. If you want to teach them how to navigate life, maybe you should let them know that their worth is not dependent on any awards, but what they themselves know.

The fierce competitor, who clearly brings the same attitude to his parenting technique, explained his rationale on Facebook and Instagram.

HBO’s “Real Sports” recently aired a show on the topic of participation trophies and the role they can play in either helping to raise self esteem or creating a feeling of entitlement. If that’s what you want, put on your skirts and get your nanny to take you to the Whippy Dip!

Children deserve more credit than Harrison is giving them, said Terrence Dehring, president of QuickTrophy LLC based in Marquette, Mich.

The offending participation trophies, in a photo posted online by NFL player James Harrison.

Sociologist Hilary Levey Friedman, the Post notes, says that kids “are even smarter than parents” when it comes to recognizing this “worthlessness”. A man that has had to earn all of these accolades you can see why he doesn’t believe in a participation trophy.

You can’t just have hot takes; you have to EARN them. “It’s not going to make them a softer person”, wrote one such commenter. We all do the best we can as parents. He and many others believe that young athletes need to learn the value of earning everything they get, rather than being patted on the back for just showing up.