Kayla Harrison did not hold back her thoughts on schooling during her appearance on Jorge Masvidal’s podcast. The two-time Olympic judo champion and UFC star opened up about her faith, her children, and why she has serious reservations about sending her daughter back to traditional school.
The conversation began with a discussion about modern society and the expectations placed on women. Harrison quickly made her stance clear, arguing that many cultural messages about independence and career success come at the expense of family life.
“Feminism is the biggest scam the devil ever pulled off in my opinion,” she said. “You can do better and you need to go be a boss babe, and okay, you can, but you can also have a family at the same time. But then instead of staying with your kids you’re going to send them off to strangers for eight hours every day so that you can go work for a man still, by the way, and get paid and have this money to not spend.”
She continued by challenging what she sees as a shift away from traditional parenting roles. “That’s the greatest lie the devil ever told, telling women, ‘Oh, you shouldn’t raise your kids.’ What are you talking about? That’s literally what you are born to do,” she said.
As a self-described single mother, Harrison explained that the daily routine surrounding school often feels chaotic and stressful rather than beneficial for families. In her view, the structure of modern schooling can leave little room for meaningful connection between parents and children.
“You wake them up at 6:00 in the morning. Everyone’s nervous systems are disregulated. You’re yelling at them, screaming, get out the door,” she said. “The only time you spend with them is the car ride to school. Then when you pick them up you have a quick dinner. Then you’re off to do the 57 sports that they’ve all got to do. Then it’s, ‘Hey, go to sleep. You’re going to be up five hours. Go to sleep.'”
Despite her daughter reportedly asking to return to school, Harrison remains unconvinced that the traditional classroom environment is the right fit.
“Why am I going to send you to spend eight hours under fluorescent lighting where there’s no movement?” she said. “Especially when you get up higher, they don’t even go outside. She’s just going to sit under bright lights for eight hours and learn things that none of us use. Do you use anything you learned in school?”
Faith, she emphasized, plays a central role in every aspect of her life, including her career as an athlete.
“I’m very deep in my faith and I feel like it brings me closer to God every time,” she said. “I have no choice but to surrender and shed my ego and rely, because I can’t do it.”
She added that those same beliefs guide how she raises her children and shape the values she prioritizes at home.
“It goes God, family, and then everything else,” she said. “And that’s what they’ve been attacking for the last 30 years.”
When asked what she ultimately wants most for her children, Harrison framed her answer around resilience and spirituality rather than material success.
“I want them to have a relationship with God,” she said. “I want them to know that no matter what, there is a force way more powerful than you could ever imagine who has your back forever and loves you unconditionally. You have a loving father no matter what. And I want them to learn that they can do hard things. If you can master the art of doing hard things in this life, you can literally do anything.”
