Watch Caitlyn Jenner's Moving ESPYs Speech

Dying NCAA player's game chosen as 'best moment'
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 16, 2015 1:44 AM CDT
Updated Jul 16, 2015 5:30 AM CDT

Caitlyn Jenner had never met another trans person until a few months ago, she revealed after receiving the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPY Awards last night. She used her acceptance speech to make a plea for tolerance, saying, "It's not just about me, it's about all of us accepting one another. We're all different. That's not a bad thing, it's a good thing," ABC News reports. She spoke of how difficult it had been dealing with her "situation" alone and warned of the abuse many young trans people face. "If you want to call me names ... go ahead, I can take it," she said, per the Guardian. "But for the thousands of kids out there coming to terms with who they are, they shouldn't have to take it."

Jenner was a controversial choice for the award, with some saying it should have gone to Lauren Hill, the 19-year-old NCAA player who played—and scored—for Mount St. Joseph while dying of an inoperable brain tumor. Her game was chosen as the year's best moment and her parents accepted the award, with her mother saying Lauren "showed us through heart, determination, courage, strength, and faith that no matter what, it is possible to achieve your dreams," Cincinnati.com reports. Hill's mom tells the New York Daily News that her daughter, who died in April, would have hated the backlash against Jenner winning the award because "to be out there and do the transformation takes a lot of courage and a lot of guts." (More ESPY awards stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X