The Special Olympics has publicly urged Kid Rock to renounce the use of the "R-word" after the musician used the slur during a recent appearance on Fox News. The comment came during Friday's episode of Jesse Watters Primetime, when Kid Rock—real name Robert Ritchie—joked that he planned to be a "r-----" for Halloween, NBC News reports. He was wearing a medical mask at the time, in an apparent dig at those who donned masks during the COVID-19 pandemic—something he's ranted about for years, EW reports.
Loretta Claiborne, chief inspiration officer of the Special Olympics, addressed the incident in an open letter, emphasizing that the term deeply demeans people with intellectual disabilities and undermines their fight for basic recognition and respect. In her letter, Claiborne asked Kid Rock to acknowledge the harm caused and "use this moment to stand with us in rejecting that word and the prejudice it represents."
She noted people with intellectual disabilities continue to battle for recognition of their humanity—something she says is undermined by the casual use of such language. The slur has seen renewed use among some right-leaning and "anti-woke" public figures, a trend that also includes recent high-profile examples from Elon Musk and Joe Rogan.
story continues below
The Special Olympics has campaigned against the word for years, pointing to its long history as a tool for belittlement and dehumanization, and sought to banish it entirely starting in 2009. "Words matter," said Claiborne—who, HuffPost reports, is the first Special Olympics athlete elected to the organization's board. Kid Rock, who has also publicly used the racist N-word and the homophobic F-slur, has not publicly responded.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
