"Stop being a Karen"

I don’t agree the term should be ‘Karen’, but examples of Karen behaviour:

• having a go at somewhere for parking where they’re perfectly entitled to, but the complainer usually parks there
• complaining to the mana that wait staff are not attentive enough, when they’re clearly run off their feet and the complainer has been making endless unreasonable requests just for the fun of seeing wait staff stressed.
• being vile to a barista because their order isn’t right, when in fact it’s exactly what the complainer ordered, they just ordered the wrong thing.

Karen ≠ assertive, masculine energy, or bossy. It’s totally unreasonable and rude. I don’t use the word myself but that’s the behaviour it refers to.

I think the pushback we see against the term is, in part, due to the origins of it. It was coined by BAME people in the USA to describe the type of white, usually wealthy or middle class women who would discriminate against them based on race.

I don't find it odd therefore that the majority white, middle class demographic of MN find it such a heinous term.

I see plenty of threads where women are described as bitches, cows etc with no reaction. But use the word Karen and my god...

Bitch does not pass. It is totally unacceptable.

I've also seen many (many) examples of men being called a Karen. Particularly on discussions on Facebook around politics.

I'll get flamed for this but I do think the general female British public have taken it as a personal insult a little harder than needed.

Again, I don't condone it and don't use the word. Some examples on here are out of order. But some examples I've seen (racism) I couldn't lose any sleep over that person being called a Karen.

The word bitch is misogynist and many women don't use it, me included. I hate it. However internalised mysoginy is rife and some women use it as it's normalised. Karen is a new phenomenon and some women use it, others don't. I'd say that the women who are angry about it are more likely to be middle aged and it's been used to shut them down. Because it's not a swear word, it's more acceptable to use.

Perhaps you yourself are making glib generalised statements about people in an unkind way ?

Also you do know that she is working ? And you say has never really worked !!!!!!!!!!!!

Shocking attitude.

Bitch does not pass. It is totally unacceptable.

or a Dick! Maybe men are just getting their own back (although you can revert to being plain old Richard as a man, poor Karen’s have no such option)

I don’t agree the term should be ‘Karen’, but examples of Karen behaviour:

• having a go at somewhere for parking where they’re perfectly entitled to, but the complainer usually parks there
• complaining to the mana that wait staff are not attentive enough, when they’re clearly run off their feet and the complainer has been making endless unreasonable requests just for the fun of seeing wait staff stressed.
• being vile to a barista because their order isn’t right, when in fact it’s exactly what the complainer ordered, they just ordered the wrong thing.

Karen ≠ assertive, masculine energy, or bossy. It’s totally unreasonable and rude. I don’t use the word myself but that’s the behaviour it refers to.

Tbh I do think ‘Karen’ exists. I have a driving instructor at present who is lovely but around 60, has never really worked (not since having children anyway), has a rich husband, sold her huge London house for ENORMOUS profit such that he/they retired early, but talks an awful lot about how atrocious it is the young can’t afford to get on the property ladder and how there should be a wealth tax ‘but for people who have much more than me, I’m not rich-rich’. When I told her I was struggling to keep my 2 kids entertained in the summer holidays in our smallish house, she said ‘Mine just ran around making dens and roller skating in the hallways, but then our house was enormous.’ 😳

To me that’s ’Karen’ - very middle class or wealthy women who lack self awareness and make glib statements with a bit of an ‘I’m alright Jack’ mentality.

There’s definitely a male equivalent too, but he throws in some sexism/racism usually and likes to call everyone a snowflake while being utterly unable to take a joke back. Possibly Simon or Nigel.

Either way they’ll annoy you then ask for help downloading an app.

That's what I thought but it was explained to me that it's used when someone is being clearly over the top unreasonable. Like, genuinely unreasonable. Still a phrase that should die as it must be hard to be called Karen these days.

I have to admit I am guilty myself. I saw someone on TV and told my DH she looked like she'd want to talk to the manager soon. It was the haircut.

So can you explain why 'Karen' generates such ire when 'bitch' passes without the batting of an eye?

That is true but I don't think that was the original intention. In any case, a man 'being a Karen' would probably just be called 'assertive'.

I don’t agree the term should be ‘Karen’, but examples of Karen behaviour:

• having a go at somewhere for parking where they’re perfectly entitled to, but the complainer usually parks there
• complaining to the mana that wait staff are not attentive enough, when they’re clearly run off their feet and the complainer has been making endless unreasonable requests just for the fun of seeing wait staff stressed.
• being vile to a barista because their order isn’t right, when in fact it’s exactly what the complainer ordered, they just ordered the wrong thing.

Karen ≠ assertive, masculine energy, or bossy. It’s totally unreasonable and rude. I don’t use the word myself but that’s the behaviour it refers to.

To me 'bitch' means someone who is being horrible just for the sake of being unkind. Though my dog would like to complain that is species-ist and there is nothing wrong with being a bitch.

There is, it's Ken. It's widely used in the states and on SM.

I agree with PP that I've only heard it being used when the woman in question is genuinely being over the top and unreasonable.
I've never heard it be used in a way to shut a woman down when she is being reasonable. Women can be hysterical and over the top. And the many examples I've seen it used, is with a hysterical woman.

I'm not condoning it, it needs to stop, mainly for all the women called Karen. It's horrible for them. But I don't agree with the blanket term of 'used to shut women up.' When most of the people I've seen using it are women and teens, and as above, women being utterly unreasonable and hysterical.

I've never heard of 'Wendy' being an insult.

Exactly.

People who claims it isn't misogynist can never give a satisfactory answer to this question.

What's been described is not behaviour that is specific to women.