“We have listened to the concerns which have been shared and are urgently updating the product labelling,” the spokesperson said.
Social media users pointed out the phrase is used in place of the slur to bypass filters that automatically flag hate speech online.
In 2018, it featured on the jersey of an American youth basketball team, among other sexist and racist terms. The team was banned from the league.
Many online spaces employ moderation filters that are designed to flag slurs and hate speech, but homophones and emojis can dodge the automatic filters.
In 2021, Bukayo Saka was among a number of footballers subject to a torrent of racial abuse on Instagram in which some commenters used emojis.
Instagram’s filters at the time did not pick up on the abuse, an issue which has since been rectified.
The tweet that reported the trousers listing to Sainsbury’s social media team has been viewed more than 750,000 times.
There is no suggestion that Sainsbury’s used the phrase intentionally.
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