I am Karen

Stop Karen as a Slur
Karens need your help to stop the use of our name as a slur. We can't do it alone. All you have to do is stop using Karen as a slur.

Visit https://www.facebook.com/IamKaren1988 to pledge support to not use Karen as a slur!

Karen is the Danish form of Katherine. Endorphins are released in a person's brain when they hear their name spoken. It is like your own personal song that makes your brain happy.
My Song has been stolen! Help me get it back!

I was once at a fast food restaurant with a family member when she took it personally how restaurant was out of lemons to put in iced tea. She proceeded to berate the poor girl just trying to take our food order. I was horrified. I could not do anything to defend this girl because the abuse would then be turned on me which would have continued for much longer. All I could do was look at the girl with eyes pleading to forgive me for not speaking up. When I saw the first Karen meme, I thought of this family member, and I laughed.

I am an introvert with the exact opposite personality to the family member I was with that day. I rarely complain even when I have a good cause. I don't like confrontation. It brings me anxiety. I always try to empathize with the person I might want to complain to. I ask how I would feel hearing this complaint from someone. Is what they did worth possibly hurting their feelings? Because of this I am a terrible landlord. Some people will continually break rules if they are not informed of a violation the first time. Then when the rule breaking gets out of hand and I ask them to stop it is returned with "You have allowed me to do this from the beginning so I am going to continue to do what I want!" This is something I continue to work on. Just simply standing up for myself is hard for me.

I started seeing Karen memes and comments more and more. It seemed to morph into a way to shut someone up when their own bad behavior was called out. On FB marketplace I once noticed comments bullying a person selling a mirror. When this person took the photo of the mirror, a trash can could be seen in the background. It appeared as if the person was from a low income area. People started bashing his mirror, calling it junk. Calling the man, a loser. There was nothing wrong with this mirror and it was also appropriately priced. I made the comment that people should be ashamed of themselves for acting like this. If they didn't want to buy the mirror to move on. I was returned with a barrage of comments "Look an actual Karen…Your name says it all." These comments did not surprise me. This was not the first time I had seen someone called a Karen for pointing out bad behavior.

It is easier to retort "Don't be a Karen!" than to examine one's own actions and admit they might be in the wrong. This is becoming a real problem for all women speaking up for themselves. If you have ever seen a woman precede her comment with "I don't want to be a Karen but…." Or "I am not a Karen but…" Then you have seen proof of this. If you are a woman and have ever decided to not speak up for yourself in fear of being called a "Karen" then you should realize the problem. I even started this letter explaining how I am not the type of person that is usually called a Karen. The fact is I should not have to do this to be respected and acknowledged that my feelings matter.

I told myself they were not talking about me personally and the trend would end soon. I told myself to just do the best I could to ignore it until then. I was wrong. Websites and YouTube channels started popping up for the sole purpose of shaming others they deemed to be "Karens". It became common to see videos and articles titled "Karen went to far", "Racist Karen gets what she deserved" and "Karen on an airplane." The definition of Karen moved from an entitled complainer to "everything that is wrong in society" or "vile." Newscasters began using it on news reports. Calling vile people a Karen has become a kind of of sport on the internet. It has sprung up in advertising, notable M&Ms Super Bowl commercial. You can buy hats, t-shirts and other products with the slogan "Don't be a Karen." There are restaurants with the theme of being rude to its customers called Karen's Diner. There is a Movie titled, "Karen." My question for you… What do you think this movie will be about?
I am often told by my loved ones that I spend too much time being hurt or angry by this trend. They tell me to ignore it. I agree with them, I do spend way too much time being hurt and angry about my name being used as a slur. I laughed at it until it was not funny anymore. I ignored it until it was constantly in my face every day. I did not take it personal until it began to hurt to hear my name and know what was going to follow.

When you use Karen as a slang term to mean "bad" or "vile" you slowly perpetuate feelings of anger and hate being directed at people named Karen. A name is very important to your identity. It is one of the first things your parents give you. Endorphins are released in a person's brain when they hear their name spoken. It is like your own personal song that makes your brain happy. I understand this all started as a joke and in the beginning it was a little funny, but we are going on years of the world telling us, Karens are vile. Many Karens have legally changed their name because of the backlash it is causing. Using it or not is up to you but just know it is causing harm.