Beyoncé will remove derogatory term from new song, spokeswoman says
CBC
Beyoncé is removing an offensive term for people with disabilities from a song on her new record, Renaissance, just weeks after rapper Lizzo also changed lyrics to remove the same word.
"The word, not used intentionally in a harmful way, will be replaced," a spokeswoman for Beyoncé wrote in a statement to The Associated Press on Monday.
The song Heated, which was co-written with Canadian rapper Drake among several others, uses the word "spaz," which is considered a derogatory reference to the medical term spastic diplegia, a form of cerebral palsy.
Lizzo removed the word from one of her songs, Grrrls, in June after disability advocates complained about the lyric. Lizzo said in a statement she never wanted to promote derogatory language.
Disability advocate Hannah Diviney, who pointed out Lizzo's lyrics and instigated the change, wrote on Twitter that hearing the word used by Beyoncé "felt like a slap in the face to me, the disabled community & the progress we tried to make with Lizzo."
