Time called the meme "Internet shorthand. Īccording to Apryl Williams of the University of Michigan, the memes "actively call out white supremacy and call for restitution". Pictures of Kate Gosselin and Jenny McCarthy's bob cut are often used to depict a Karen, and their bobs are sometimes called the "can-I-speak-to-your-manager?" haircut. Other stereotypes include anti-vaccination beliefs, racism, excessive use of Facebook, and a particular bob haircut with blond highlights. The meme carries several stereotypes, the most notable being that a Karen will demand to "speak to the manager" of a hypothetical service provider. According to Woods, a Karen "demands the world exist according to her standards with little regard for others, and she is willing to risk or demean others to achieve her ends." Rachel Charlene Lewis, writing for Bitch, agrees, saying a Karen doesn't view others as individuals and instead moves "through the world prepared to fight faceless conglomerate of lesser-than people who won't give her what she wants and feels she deserves." Kansas State University professor Heather Suzanne Woods, whose research interests include memes, said a Karen's defining characteristics are a sense of entitlement, a willingness and desire to complain, and a self-centered approach to interacting with others. of white women calling the police on Black people, The Guardian called 2020 "the year of Karen". In an article on high profile incidents in the U.S. Now defunct Bitch magazine described Karen as a term that originated with Black women but was co-opted by white men. The term was popularized on Black Twitter as a meme used to describe white women who "tattle on black kids' lemonade stands" or who unleash the "violent history of white womanhood". Ī more pointed explanation, which involves race, is the expression originating among Black people to refer to unreasonable white women. The posts led to the creation of the subreddit r/FuckYouKaren, containing memes about the posts, and inspiring spinoffs including r/karen and r/EntitledKarens dedicated to criticizing Karens. In December 2017, Karen memes regarding entitled women went viral on Reddit, the earliest being from user karmacop9, who ranted about his ex-wife Karen. Early uses of Karen as a joke punchline include the airheaded character Karen (played by Amanda Seyfried) from the 2004 film Mean Girls, Dane Cook's 2005 sketch "The Friend Nobody Likes" on his album Retaliation, and a 2016 Internet meme regarding a woman in an ad for the Nintendo Switch console who exhibits perceived antisocial behavior and is given the nickname "antisocial Karen". įor the term "Karen", several possible origins have been proposed. Linguist Kendra Calhoun connects "Karen" stereotypes to the older " soccer mom". As late as 2018, before the use of "Karen" caught on, alliterative names matching particular incidents were used, such as "Barbecue Becky", "Cornerstore Caroline", and "Permit Patty". In the antebellum era (1815–1861), " Miss Ann" was used. In African-American culture, there is a history of calling difficult white women or those who "weaponize" their position by a generic pejorative name. The Guardian called 2020 "the year of Karen". The term has also been applied to male behavior. As of 2020, the term increasingly appeared in media and social media as a general criticism of middle class white women, including during the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd protests. The term has been considered pejorative by those who believe it is sexist, ageist, classist, and is used to control women's behavior. A notable example was the Central Park birdwatching incident in 2020. Depictions include demanding to "speak to the manager", being racist, or wearing a particular bob cut hairstyle. The term is often portrayed in memes depicting white women who use their white privilege to demand their own way. Karen is a pejorative term used as slang for a white woman perceived as entitled or demanding beyond the scope of what is normal. The inverted bob, a haircut often associated with the term 'Karen'
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