Who is ‘Karen’? Here's how the name for ‘entitled White women’ originated and it could be Martin Scorsese's fault
Who is ‘Karen’? Slang for an "obnoxious, angry, entitled, and often racist middle-aged white woman" who uses her privilege to get her way or call out others' behaviors, the moniker was first a verbal attack and soon mushroomed into a meme. Now, the Internet is full of ‘Karens’ and it is a term used over and over again. But how did it begin and who really was the first Karen?
It gained momentum with the infamous May 2020 incident when Amy Cooper — a woman in Central Park called cops on a blackbirder because he’d asked her to leash her out-of-control dog! Yes, it was horrific! Shocking as it may seem, newspaper headlines were soon crammed with punchlines like “Central Park Karen”. What's more, the birder’s sister also called her a “Karen” on Twitter.
How did the term suddenly come to everyone's minds? While the origin is unknown, there were quite a few instances when that name came into prominence — and mind you, the women labeled as Karens were not actually Karen. They could be anyone: from suburban shoppers to grocery-store owners and even women who wanted the pandemic to be over just because they wanted a haircut! One of the largest subreddits, r/F**kYouKaren, was created back in December 2017 about a man who complained about his ex-wife, Karen, saying she took both his children and his house after their split.
With over 500,000 subscribers, the founder — a 17-year-old from Irvine, California, who goes by the username karmacop97 — told The Atlantic that its usage was spiked up during Covid-19. “It’s been a little bit wild seeing how the Karen archetype is increasing in the wild now,” he said, and added, “Covid-19 is just bringing them more into the spotlight.”
But the Reddit thread might not have been the first reference for Karen. Did it originate on Black Twitter to describe white women who "tattle on Black kids' lemonade stands"? Well, in the '90s, it was Beckys and Miss Ann instead of Karens! It is also said that the name got popular after a Black 'Jeopardy' sketch on 'Saturday Night Live' with Chadwick Boseman. When he was asked if Karen was bringing her potato salad to his cookout, he joked after getting the last question right, "Aw, hell no, Karen. Keep your bland-ass potato salad to yourself!" Was that it?
Could it be from a scene in 'Goodfellas' or perhaps, Dane Cook's 2005 sketch 'The Friend Nobody Likes' where he said "Karen is always a douchebag"? Well, no one knows what really made ‘Karens’ popular.
After the Amy Cooper incident, another woman went viral for leaning on a car in order to not let a driver get the spot he needed. From "coughing Karens" to "yelling Karens", they just seem to be everywhere. There is a Florida ‘Karen’, a Californian ‘Karen’ and even a Rhode Island ‘Karen’! Now there are Reddit threads on ‘The Karenest of all Karens’. One comment reads, "Eve was probably the first Karen," and another says, "I have a new coworker that I would like to submit into consideration. Her name is actually Karen and 5 mins into our first meeting I knew she was an OG Karen."
So who can you call a ‘Karen’? They usually have a short hair cut and they often say "can I speak to the manager?" What's more, they are anti-vaxxers and are also generalized into annoying mothers who own Volvos and wear acrylic 24x7! According to the Urban Dictionary, Karen is the entitled western woman who takes everything wrong and cranks it up by several thousand per cent. The definition further reads: "They are a mutated subspecies that descends from the Soccer Mom, and have many of their traits."
Many times, pictures of Kate Gosselin, who starred in the reality TV show, 'Jon & Kate Plus 8', are used to depict Karen, especially for the "can-I-speak-to-your-manager haircut". So when you wonder who is a Karen, they're basically just entitled b***hes! But, it's not just Karens, there are many more memes: From Chad to Kyle and Trixie to Mister Charlie or even Bye, Felicia, there are umpteen memes and slangs that exist just for the joy of it!