Rapper Kanye West has put his foot in the mouth yet again as he asked wheelchair-bound fans to stand up before realizing his mistake.
A 4-minute long video clip put up by a fan on YouTube shows the misunderstanding unravel.
Currently, on the fag end of his Yeezus tour in Australia, Kanye brought the crowd at Sydney's Qantas Credit Union Arena to a standstill when he stopped performing as he wanted the entire audience to stand up for the next song.
"I decided I can't do this song, I can't do the rest of the show until everybody stands up. Unless you got a handicap pass and you get special parking and s**t," the rapper told the crowd on Friday night, Sept. 12.
Thousands of fans obliged West, barring two fans who were in a wheelchair. Kanye spotted the two fans and singled them out for remaining seated, not realizing that they were in a wheelchair. He called out to the two to get up on their feet and the crowd started booing the two fans for not getting up as well.
"This is the longest I've had to wait to do a song, it's unbelievable," said a visibly annoyed West to the audience.
Refusing to continue with the show all this while, the rapper soon realized his error when one of the fans waved a prosthetic limb his way prompting Kanye to respond "OK, you fine."
Kanye then noticed the second fan, too, was in a wheelchair and, therefore, could not stand. Satisfied, the rapper resumed the performance and proceeded to sing "The Good Life."
However, the type of language used by West to address people with disabilities (remember the "handicap pass" comment?) has created quite a furor, with campaigners calling for an apology from Kanye. The activists also suggest that West undertake an awareness course since he made disparaging comments.
"Asking disabled people to show their handicap pass is patronising and inappropriate. He should apologise. Kanye West would also benefit from disability awareness training," said Craig Wallace of People With Disability Australia (PWDA).
With West coming under fire for the gaffe, it remains to be seen if he will issue an apology.
