There is no equivalent term to “Karen” for a man being verbally rude or abusive or overbearing or dismissive to another person in public.
In the 1950s and 60s unescorted women were not welcome in the finer restaurants in New York and other cities.. If a woman was a business person or a tourist she was expected to utilize room service in her hotel. If you wanted to dine in a upscale restaurant you were expected to have a male escort. Unescorted men were welcomed; unescorted women were discouraged.
If you reserved a table, when you showed up alone you might be told there was a mistake and be denied entry. If you were seated it was likely to be at an undesirable table and you could expect to be ignored. Often a woman without a male escort was regarded as a hooker and treated disrespectfully If you protested and demanded a better table or better service, you became labeled a bitch. It did not matter whether you were white, black, Asian, or from another country. You were female and powe and finer things were not for you.
By the late 60s and early 70s women started fighting back and demanded to be treated as equal to male patrons. Restaurants fought back with the label “Karen.” Karen was the woman who demanded to be treated as equal to male patrons. She demanded the same service and respect accorded the male. She felt entitled to equality.
I now see this term being resurrected just as the hard won victories of women on the path to equality are being attacked and rolled back. Once again we fight for the right to control our own bodies. I don.t think the resurrection of sexist terms is a coincidence.
I know nothing about the woman in the video. I don’t understand the language. She appears to be acting badly, and appears to be verbally attacking someone else, a woman.. I have seen many men behave this way but there is no label for them. I suspect this woman is upholding a patriarchal system that is the real threat to equality to safety, and to life.
Women are not our main problem and I think the use of the label Karen works to misdirect our attention from solving the actual problem
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