Serena Williams courted curiosity after calling out what appears to be a hotel for its cotton plant decoration.
In an Instagram story she shared Thursday, the camera approaches the arrangement as Williams says, “All right, everyone, how do we feel about cotton as a decoration? Personally for me, it doesn’t feel great.”
In another story, she holds a piece of the cotton in her gloved hand. “So actually it feels like nail polish remover cotton,” she says, wiping her nails before making a cringing gesture.
Multiple outlets covered the post as some of the obvious questions remained unanswered by the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion herself: Was she merely criticizing a design aesthetic or suggesting the cotton plant carried historical implications of racism?
Williams appeared this week at a NikeSKIMS event in New York City. She stars in the brand’s promotional video.
HuffPost is attempting to reach her through multiple channels for comment.
Meanwhile, the internet is abuzz.
