Author Julie Bindel said calling people ‘Karen’ was sexist and classist – not the only 5 replies you need but they’re a start
Author Julie Bindel started quite the debate on Twitter when she called out people who call people ‘Karen’. Specifically, she said this.
Does anyone else think the ‘Karen’ slur is woman hating and based on class prejudice?
— Julie Bindel (@bindelj) April 5, 2020
And it prompted lots and lots of responses, including plenty from people who agreed with her, including the Guardian’s Hadley Freeman.
Yes – it’s sexist, classist and ageist, in that order
— Hadley Freeman (@HadleyFreeman) April 5, 2020
But it’s fair to say the majority of people really didn’t.
Here’s the dictionary.com definition, just in case you were wondering.
‘Karen is a mocking slang term for an entitled, obnoxious, middle-aged white woman. Especially as featured in memes, Karen is generally stereotyped as having a blonde bob haircut, asking to speak to retail and restaurant managers to voice complaints or make demands, and being a nagging, often divorced mother from Generation X.’
And if 5 responses ever summed up how most people felt about Bindel’s tweet, then it’s probably these 5.
1..
If being called “Karen” is a slur to you I think you’ll be okay
— Justin Jackson (@J_ManPrime21) April 5, 2020
2.
As a Karen can I officially set the record straight
Karen is not a slur
And if you don't agree I need to speak to your manager— Karen Pollock MBACP (@CounsellingKaz) April 6, 2020
3.
If I wrote a book on how white women weaponise their femininity in addition to their class and racial privilege in order to victimise themselves and cry misogyny when faced with any small amount of critique titled The Karen Slur would you read it? It’s lockdown I have time. https://t.co/AWlE1NHNXg
— Scorp:igbo 🌒 (@VanessaIfeoma) April 5, 2020
4.
If ‘Karen’ were the same as the N-word you’d call it the K-word.
— feminist next door (@emrazz) April 6, 2020
5.
Not art.
— Art Or Not Art (@ArtDecider) April 5, 2020
Oh, and also this.
In summary …
Trying to claim that ‘Karen’ is a slur is the whitest white woman thing I’ve seen yet.
— Fangirl Jeanne (@fangirlJeanne) April 5, 2020
READ MORE
Whether Tommy Lee wrote it or not, this NSFW takedown of Donald Trump is glorious