New York, NY (AHN) - Russel Simmons, one of the most widely-respected icons in the hip-hop community, announced on Monday through his Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, that he would ask record labels to “voluntarily remove/bleep/delete” three sexually - and racially - offensive words: bi*ch, h* and ni**er.

“It is important to re-emphasize that our internal discussions with industry leaders are not about censorship,” Simmons and HSAN Executive Director Benjamin Chavis said in a statement. “Our discussions are about the corporate social responsibility of the industry to voluntarily show respect to African Americans and other people of color, African American women and to all women in lyrics and images.”

Simmons said the words should be considered “extreme curse words.”

He also suggested members of the music, radio and television industries form a “Coalition on Broadcast Standards.”

The announcement comes less than two weeks after radio and television host Don Imus was fired for making offensive comments about the Rutgers University women’s basketball time.

Since his firing, some have questioned the hip-hop industry’s use of the same words Imus was axed for.