Love & Hip Hop fans dug up Erica Mena’s, 35, colorist past after she called castmate Spice, 41, a “monkey” in a heated fight on Tuesday’s (Aug. 29) episode of Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta.
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This Isn’t Colorism. This Is Racism
Erica Mena isn’t Black. Colorism is exercised within the same ethnic group/race. Calling Spice a “monkey” is pure, cut & dry textbook RACISM
I implore the confused to get off of social media and open a book/dictionary pic.twitter.com/EEKl91m351
— sa: (@notshawnallen) August 30, 2023
Having lunch with Shekinah Anderson, the 35-year-old told the 41-year-old that she inspired her after learning about her near-death experience. Spice had a hernia that caused a sepsis infection that led to organ failure and ate at her skin in 2022.
The reality star said she, Sierra Gates and Bambi Benson fasted for two days and prayed after discovering Spice’s ailment. Spice wasn’t falling for Erica’s niceties, and it’s clear why. Erica didn’t like that her ex, Safaree, claimed he wouldn’t know what to do if Spice wasn’t alive after learning of her experience. The 35-year-old said he didn’t act that way when she almost died from her accouchement—comparing her experience to Spice’s.
Spice didn’t like Erica comparing and noted how she raised her two children — 16-year-old son Nicholas and 12-year-old daughter Nicholatoy — alone for 14 years.
Erica interrupted, claiming she had done it for 16. Many viewers believed Spice stooped low when she interjected that Erica raised her 16-year-old son, “who don’t like [her].”
“My son loves me,” Spice bragged.
Knowing things were about to pop off, Shekinah gestured for them to stop, but things worsened.
After going back and forth, the 35-year-old stood up, simultaneously flipping the table. Security and staff members separated the raging women, who continued hurling insults. Erica took things further with her words.
“You should’ve died. You wanna mention my kid? You should’ve died, b***h!” Erica exclaimed while staff attempted to calm her down outside the restaurant.
Spice continued yelling at Erica through a window, repeatedly saying, “Your son hates you!”
Erica responded, “You monkey, you f***king blue monkey!”
Erica’s insult shocked Shekinah, who voiced her disapproval in her confessional.
“You have Jamaican children. Would you like it if someone called your children monkeys? You shouldn’t have did that, Erica. That was out of line,” Shekinah commented.
Some internet users took the model’s side, claiming Spice “went low” when she brought Erica’s son into the mix.
However, others affirmed nothing justified Erica’s colorism remark and even dug up information to prove this wasn’t the first time she called a Black woman a monkey.
In 2015, the 35-year-old reality star had beef with former LHHA star Jhonni Blaze, who accused her of calling her a “monkey.” Blaze reportedly tried to record her calling her the name but said her demeanor changed when the camera started rolling.
The same year, a promoter accused the reality star of calling Black people monkeys, claiming she didn’t want to work with them.
Fuming from the altercation, Spice called Erica out for her selective outrage, posting on her Instagram Story clips of Stevie J and Scrappy mentioning her children at different times on the show but not raging the way she did with Spice.
She wrote, “Kids are off limits, right? But I guess it’s only when I ask ’cause where’s the same energy when Scrappy and Stevie J talked about it, but now I’m a monkey and should have died on the table. Ok, Erica.”
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She then shared an Instagram Story, displaying Erica’s old tweet, where she called someone a monkey.
“This is the most press and attention b***h rock got its whole career…Now that’s a funny joke. #ThisMonkeyisAfool.”
Many are calling for Erica’s termination from the show.
“I’m appalled. Erica Mena just called Spice a monkey. She should absolutely be fired. That’s pure racism. This is that same s**t Everlyn did to OG on #BasketballWives. Latinas always wanna be Black & say n***a then use their heritage as a weapon when it’s convenient,” one person tweeted.
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