Please can we talk about using the name Karen as an insult?

I agree, its nasty and generally used in an "ok boomer" way for young people to be snide to middle aged women. Little shits. My DCs use it sometimes on me and they get pretty short shrift for it. If my name actually were Karen I would be livid that its used as an insult.

And even Dick doesn't really have it so bad - yes people will laugh at his name, but the likelihood is, he's actually called Richard so he has some other options!

You have my support. There is a lot of ageism on Mumsnet and I've been close to walking away on a number of occasions because of it. I'm happy to join in calling it out.

Oddly enough, I've never heard a man refer to someone as a 'Karen'. It's always been women using the put down about another woman, in my experience.

I appreciate that others' experiences might be different, but it took this OP to make me realise the above. And now I'm quite depressed.

NiceKaren
Totally agree, wasn’t brave enough to start a thread about this, but have felt increasingly disturbed about this in all areas of my life with respect to many different names.
In Chaucer’s time people were named after particular physical or personality features, some complimentary and some less so,
Similarly people were named after the nature of their work and this carried down to their offspring.
In modern times children are given names for any reason their parents feel is fitting, and it’s upsetting to see others try to impose negative connotations to a persons name.

It's also a demonstration of how women are grouped into 'types' much more than men, usually by men, as we are 2D characters rather than whole people. The entertainment industry has played it's part in this a lot, at least the stuff we have consumed in the UK for years often out of USA, with women in films props to further the man's story. While the men even if a stereotype are given a more rounded personality, and of course they always 'get the girl'.

I agree I loved her beautiful curls

And Karen on Outnumbered was fabulous!

Chad is also used for the jock type.
Kyle is Karen, but male. Usually lower class than Karen though.

'The male equivalent is Kyle. And Chad.'

Chad I think is the name used by incels for men who get lots of sex?

Not quite the same.

Kyle?

I'm not on much social media, what does Kyle do?

Neither of these names are the names of many many men in the UK either!

To op it's just another example of women being blamed for everything.

The Karen insult was nothing to do with the girl in Outnumbered. It is a lazy catch-all slur on the stereotypical woman who demands to see the manager and has a severe bob.

It's lazy thinking. Much like the 'ok, boomer' thing. It's a way of sweeping aside an entire demographic of people rather than engage and argue and THINK.

Pisses me off.

The male equivalent is Kyle. And Chad.

I understood it was a reference to a somewhat obnoxious little girl called Karen in Outnumbered? I’ve never seen the series, admittedly, and that may be someone else’s more charitable interpretation...?

I don’t suppose the Wendies of the world were thrilled either when Mn adopted it as shorthand for a false new friend who cuts you out of your friendship group...?

I know two 80s born Karens. They hate the Karen memes.

I have a close relation called Karen, the loveliest sweetest person I know. This makes me sad too. Its definitely gotten more prevalent.

There's been a big backlash in America against middle aged white women, as people assume they voted for trump.

The statistic 52% of white women voted for Trump is often quoted. Though actually it was 47%.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/time.com/5422644/trump-white-women-2016/%3famp=true

Since then there have been a lot of jokes about Karen and Susan and people having 'ask to see the manager' haircuts ()

It's over here too now. Never mind that a far greater percentage of white men voted for Trump, that is unimportant, apparently.

Yep, seen lots of sexist posts and memes about Karen buying too much loo roll and going to the beach and no equivalent memes for all the boys and men coughing and spitting in people’s faces...

I love the name Karen.

All the Karens I know are in their 30s and early 40s.

i hate it, it jars every time i see it- and i see it a lot.

Sorry, late 1960s to early 1970s

I have only seen Susan on social media. Usually used to refer to people who call out people on not following all the rules....I guess pedantic people

Solidarity.
It is ageist / sexist / classist.
People using it are looking for someone to blame for whatever's pissing them off and they might as well say it's middle aged, lower middle class women that's to blame.

It's like, they're too woke to use the 'your mum' style insults of yesteryear, so they've found something similar that they think doesn't make them look ageist and sexist but it makes them both those plus classist as well.

You should never use a personal characteristics that some one was (pretty much) born with to put them down.

All the Karens that I know (including me) are late 60s early 70s, I have a cousin the same age called Susan. It's absolutely about mocking the middle aged woman. Telling her to shut up and get back out of sight.

I’m 55 and half my class were called Karen. It was a name that many of the nice/popular girls had. My bestie who died a few years ago of breast cancer was Karen. I really hate the casual stereotyping.

Susan and Karen are names for 1950s babies not 1970.