"Stop being a Karen"

[ValsCupcakes]

I heard this on Tuesday from a young, no more than 20, guy saying it to his girlfriend in the street in town.

Is this still going on? I'm out this afternoon at my friend's house. She is called Karen and is sick of it. I heard a woman phone into the radio too the other week saying her husband's satnav was an annoying female voice so he called it Karen.

There is a certain type of person, and they do tend to be of a certain demographic, that just loves to berate people, is always right and is just not used to being told "no". This type of person is rife and I do love that we are reaching a point in society where we don't force low and minimum wage workers to go along with rude arrogant demands and are now encouraging them to stick up for themselves.
This is where "Karen" originally came from.

However, it has now sadly morphed into a misogynistic term and a way for mostly men to shut women up when they are losing the argument. Eventually it will lose it's original meaning entirely and just become yet another insult solely thrown at women.

I got called Karen for objecting to someone smoking in a non smoking area and pointing out the smoking zone. I was polite about it. Obviously though I was over the top and rude if someone decided I was a Karen or did he just object to being called out on his behaviour by a mere woman so using it in a misogynistic way.

How is she a driving instructor if she has never worked??

Don't like the term Karen either.

How would you refer to a man who does those things?

Elon Musk is referred to as a "Space Karen" for his entitled, racist attitude, which is kind of funny imo.

See this is when it really pisses me off. A "Karen" was originally for someone acting entitled. So moaning that someone has parked on a public road because it's outside her house would be an example.
In your situation it's actually the smoker who was being a "Karen". They felt entitled to smoke somewhere when actually they weren't, and felt that everyone else should have to put up with their smoke just because they wanted to smoke there. Total Karen.

DS called me Karen once - note I say once.
In our house we joke that the word "Bitch" means women with strong opinions.
So I suppose Karen could be a woman who doesn't passively put up with shit.
Either way its a term I hate and anyone using it in my earshot would get full woman with strong opinions

Do women ever shut up though? I don't mean that in a negative way btw I'm a woman and there's nothing anybody could say to make me shut up and I find it odd that anyone thinks that any insult is automatically designed to shut women up. I hate the idea that women are these weak creatures and nobody should call us names because we will all scurry off home in tears. Obviously name calling can be hurtful and I'm not saying it's something anybody should put up with and I'm not defending the use of the word Karen and I don't use it but I don't get how it has become so offensive. Whenever I hear it my first thought is that it means someone is being an entitled twat (male or female) so I think everyone should just call these people that instead and maybe just leave the Karen term out of it.

I thought it was a name for woman over 55 who complain about first world issues vehemently

well before woman over 55 were getting ignored and didn’t have a voice

what we really need to do is turn it around and make this a positive

let’s give Karen a voice and hear her instead of throwing her out to sea now she has had children, paid tax, worked 2 jobs

we need to reply with

at least now your listening to me, better than before

I'd call the man version a Gammon

100%

It's just a new misogynist slur to use against all women. I know the origins related specifically to racist white women, but it's not meant that for a while now.

Well it wouldn't shut me up, quite the opposite BUT it does have the desired effect on a lot of women I am sure.
You only need to spend enough time on MN to realsie that a lots of women don't feel confident to stand their ground

So what if a man did that? What do you call a man who acts that way and trust me they do and some!

A driving instructor who has "never really worked"? But she is literally working in a skilled job which requires training etc. Being a driving instructor isn't some MC hobby job.

What you've described makes no sense, so I can only assume most of what you've said about her is prejudiced bollocks.

The problem with Karen is the attitude here by a lot of posters - the assumption is if someone is called a Karen that they're being over the top so people won't listen to them and hear if they have a justified complaint. It may not shut the woman up but will stop others listening

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.

NC for this one! My name is actually Karen and when I first heard someone call someone else a Karen I was a bit bemused. I think I saw it more that it referred to a woman of a certain age that might ask to see the manager. It just annoys me now and I actually hate giving out my name over the phone or if someone asks me in person in case they ask me if I’m a “Karen”

She calls it her retirement job to earn some spending money.

And LOL. Everything I’ve said is literally what she has told me word for word.

Plenty of women going around social media calling other women Karen's.

The male equivalent is Kevin.

Just because women use a misogynist insult doesn't mean it isn't misogynist.

Plenty of women used the word "slag" too.

Maybe I’m thick skinned but I don’t really care about ‘misogynistic insults’, there are plenty in reverse - dickhead, prick, bastard, wanker etc

I doubt women who find being called misogynist names offensive, have only been called names once. For many women, daily life is full of sexist microaggessions that have a cumulative effect and being called a Karen is yet another way of getting shut down.

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...

I don't believe there are as many in reverse. There are hundreds of insults to describe women and a handful for men

It's not just misogynist, it's also ageist.

Even the posters who have suggested male equivalents (e.g. Keith) are being ageist, because every single one of these names is most commonly attached to an older person. No-one has suggested a 'young' name.