This is the heartbreaking speech Junior Seau's daughter couldn't give at his Hall of Fame induction

Junior Seau
(Image credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)

The Pro Football Hall of Fame drew criticism in July for announcing that Sydney Seau, daughter of the late linebacker Junior Seau, would not be allowed to speak at her father's induction ceremony. Eventually, they reached a compromise, but Sydney Seau still couldn't give a full speech.

Seau died by suicide in 2012 after reportedly suffering from brain damage and depression related to his concussions on the field. He played in the NFL for 20 years, earning 12 Pro Bowl selections.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Something that is hard for me to admit to myself and to you all is the fact that I miss his singing. I miss his huge mangled hands strumming on his uke, playing the only five chords he knew, to the hundreds of songs he would attempt to sing off-key. I miss him calling me Beau, my girlie middle name, and I miss him hugging me too long and too tightly, almost to the point where I couldn't breathe. [The New York Times]

Grab some tissues and then watch her entire speech below. Julie Kliegman

Explore More
Julie Kliegman

Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.