Tennis legend Serena Williams fires back at skin-bleaching accusations

Tennis legend Serena Williams fired back at accusations she had been bleaching her skin on Monday in an Instagram Live video.

The allegations popped up after the 23-time Grand Slam tennis champion shared a video of herself at a school event with her husband and two children, according to People magazine. 

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"And then I put just that neutral color, that is actually my skin color, and no, for you haters out there, I do not bleach my skin," Williams said in the video. "There is a thing called sunlight, and in that sunlight, you get different colors."

Williams said she was wearing "stage makeup" when she filmed the video that sparked the remarks.

"Yes, I’m calling you out on this because it is ridiculous," she added. "Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, she bleached her skin.’ I’m a dark, Black woman, and I love who I am, and I love how I look."

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Williams said she does not judge those who do bleach their skin.

"But that’s what this world is about, and I stay in my lane — the non-judgy one, and I keep it. But no, I actually don’t bleach my skin, so can we just kinda clear that up?"

Williams has fully embraced retirement in recent years but has had some serious issues to deal with.

The 43-year-old revealed in October she had a massive cyst removed from her neck.

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"It kinda hurt coming out. Obviously, I went under for it, but they had to put a drain in it because it was so much," she said in a TikTok video. "But everything worked out, and I feel really happy to have worked with some great doctors."

Fox News’ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.

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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.