Roseanne Barr’s daughter says she's received threats over her mom's comments

Erin Donnelly
·Yahoo Life Senior Editor


Roseanne Barr’s racist comments about former Obama official Valerie Jarrett have cost her a job and a TV show. They’re also making life pretty difficult for her daughter Jennifer Pentland.

The 42-year-old Pentland — whose father is the comedian’s first husband, Bill Pentland — spoke to Hawaii News Now about the fallout over her mother’s controversial comments about Jarrett. Barr has defended herself against accusations of racism, saying that she didn’t realize that Jarrett was a black woman when she referred to her as the “offspring of the Muslim Brotherhood and Planet of the Apes.” ABC canceled her Roseanne reboot in response.

Roseanne Barr has made controversial comments about Valerie Jarrett and the people of Hawaii. (Photo: James Devaney/Getty Images)
Roseanne Barr has made controversial comments about Valerie Jarrett and the people of Hawaii. (Photo: James Devaney/Getty Images)

More recently, and closer to home for Pentland, have come reports of a remark Barr made during last week’s live podcast with Rabbi Schmuley Boteach. During their discussion, she mentioned retreating to her home in Hawaii after she was fired. While she spoke with praise about the state’s history and the “love” she felt from people on the street, she also referred to it as an “island full of brown people.”

Pentland, who has called Hawaii home for a decade, has already slammed media coverage of her mom’s comment, saying it was misrepresented.

Pentland told Hawaii News Now that her mother has nothing but love for the Aloha State, and she insisted Barr is not racist.

“She loves her community,” she said. “She loves this island; we all do. I’ve been here 10 years. I work full time at a little market in Honokaa. She supplies all the produce there, or a lot of the produce for that market. It’s a labor of love. She’s not getting anything back for it.”

She added that she has received backlash regarding her mother’s behavior — including “horrible” comments from people she considers friends.

“It’s absolutely terrifying,” said Pentland. “I saw what people who are my friends, people I’m friends with, were saying about my mom. Horrible things I don’t even want to repeat. But a lot of them were like, ‘Take her fishing, leave her in the ocean, let her die.'”

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