R&B singer Ari Lennox recently called out the hit ’90s sitcom Martin for how it treated the character Pam, played by Tichina Arnold. In a post that sparked online discussion, Lennox said the constant jokes about Pam’s looks “still piss [her] off,” adding, “Pam was gorgeous. They stayed clowning her for no reason.”
On Martin, the lead character often roasted Pam with insults about her hair, face, and style—calling her things like “beast” or “Scary J. Blige.” While it was played for laughs back then, many today see it as mean-spirited and rooted in colorism and beauty bias.
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Lennox’s comments have reignited the conversation about how Black women—especially darker-skinned women—are portrayed in media.
