Steve Harvey is defending his wife Marjorie after she landed herself in some hot water on social media

Steve Harvey Jumps to Wife Marjorie's Defense for Using the R-Word: 'It's a Word, Ain't It?'

Steve Harvey is defending his wife Marjorie after she landed herself in some hot water on social media.

Earlier this week, Marjorie, 53, posted a video of her and Steve, 61, slicing up fruits and veggies while making juice in their kitchen. In the clip, Marjorie uses the word “r—–ed,” an outdated pejorative typically aimed at people with intellectual disabilities.

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“I’m sitting here arguing with my husband, ’cause clearly he thinks I’m r—–ed [and] I don’t know how to cut a beet,” she says.

The video sparked outrage among social media users, who flooded the post with over 3,000 comments.

“As somebody who works with adults with Developmental Disorders and a loving sister of a beautiful woman with Down Syndrome, I can assure you that when the word retard is used in a derogatory manner it is EXTREMELY offensive,” wrote one user. “People need to educate themselves.”

Wrote another, “It wasn’t until I had my third daughter who has Down Syndrome that I realized how offensive the R word can be. As a mother to a child with special needs hearing this word is truly heartbreaking and makes my stomach turn.”

Harvey soon intervened, jumping to his wife’s defense.

“What you trippin bout cause my wife said the wordr—–ed… it’s a word ain’t it?” he commented on the post. “And she ain’t talking bout nobody but herself to me … What she was doing was just that and she ain’t saying it bout nobodies baby… I don’t ever comment but [damn] is you just looking for something to be pissed off about cause we ain’t… and I wrote it r—–ed. NAH!!”

Image zoom Steve Harvey/Instagram

His response sparked backlash of its own.

“Steve Harvey, doubling down in defense of hate speech,” replied one user. “What a brave warrior for free speech. What a civil rights icon. (What an a—hole.)”

“Instead of defending the use of the word I think it would speak VOLUMES if you would admit that it wasn’t the right word to use even in a playful unrelated scenario and going forward you will find other words to use as this word is extremely offensive!” commented another. “Just my thoughts — hoping your ears are open and that God will grant you wisdom and change hearts one at a time! Think of the awareness you two could bring being in the public light!”

Image zoom Steve and Marjorie Harvey Ethan Miller/Getty

Marjorie, however, was pleased that her husband had her back.