...and this is why I hate the Karen meme. Yeah sure in the distant mists of the pasts it has kinda been used to point out genuinely vile behaviour, rudeness, entitlement, racism, screaming at innocent retail employees etc. But now people often use Karen to describe situations where people are completely in the right to advocate for themselves. And instead of discarding the whole rotten meme, people are trying to make “good Karens” happen. No, it’s not being a Karen, it’s basic self-advocacy, it’s having a voice, it’s having a spine, come on! You’re not a Karen for sending back a drink that’s not what you ordered. You’re not a Karen for making demands on a corporation’s finances or time. Unfortunately, sometimes you need to mildly inconvenience low-ranking admins or customer service workers in order to avoid getting royally fucked over by their boss’s boss’s boss’s boss’s boss. But a customer politely asking an employee for help or clarification does not a Karen make. At this point, the Karen meme looks more and more like a capitalist psyop trying to convince people not to stand up for themselves in corporate situations. It’s like the equivalent of McDonalds’ smear campaign against the lady who sued them for their scalding hot coffee. Oooh, this person is advocating for themselves so they must be real bitch, haha right? (Also women end up being called Karen before opening their mouth just because they’re women and have a face someone dislikes.)
