Skip to content
  • Essence GU
  • Beautycon
  • NaturallyCurly
  • Afropunk
  • Essence Studios
  • Soko Mrkt
  • Ese Funds
  • Refinery29
  • 2025 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
  • Celebrity
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Lifestyle
  • Entrepreneurship
  • News
  • Shopping
  • Video
  • Events
  • Subscribe
Home • News

Serena Williams Goes into Lockdown and Gets 'Blacklisted'

After going into lockdown, Serena Williams has a roller-coaster week!
Serena Williams Goes into Lockdown
Serena Main
By Dreux Dougall · Updated October 28, 2020
It’s been a roller coaster week for Serena Williams.

The tennis star fled into her home’s panic room after her security cameras picked up an unexpected visitor lurking around her L.A. mansion. Her assistant called police at 6 a.m. to report a burglar, but soon realized it was a mistake.

PHOTOS: Jet-Setting Celebs at Airports

According to TMZ, “It was a false alarm — the person on Serena’s security camera was a random drug tester for an unspecified tennis association, stopping by Serena’s pad for some unannounced pee.”

It’s unknown whether or not she submitted a sample.

PHOTOS: Boundary Breaking Black Women

As if that weren’t enough news for one week, the tennis star is being “blacklisted.”

The tennis champion has been chosen to be a part of the National Gallery’s “Black List,”  located in Washington, D.C. The “Black List” is comprised of 50 large-scale photographs highlighting African-Americans of distinction.

Created as part of a larger project by HBO’s Timothy-Greenfield Sanders, Williams shares the honor with Whoopi Goldberg, Sean Combs, and John Legend, among others.

black-tennis-players-launch-icon