Karens unite to reclaim the name
WHAT’S in a name?
Well for the past couple of years, Karen has definitely taken on a whole new meaning.
Like Karen, from Brighton, whose real name was Jodi. There was also Bunnings Karen, Australia Post Karen and various other Karens, all totally obnoxious and not a single one actually called Karen.
While some might take offence at this Karen phenomenon, to others it’s just a bit of nonsense created by some brain stuck in neutral somewhere and followed by sheep around the world.
And, unlike Nigel no friends, lazy Susan, Debbie downer, dopey Dora and not happy Jan, Karen did not come with a single defining characteristic, but a whole bucketload!
Uh oh, I feel a complaint coming on.
Now, a Karen is perceived to be a white woman, middle-aged, with short blonde hair, someone with a sense of entitlement and/or demanding beyond the scope of what is considered normal.
So, I decided it was time to assess my own level of “Karenness” to see if I came up to scratch. First step, am I white?
Guilty, Your Honour! Not that I had a choice in the matter.
Might it lessen my Karen culpability if I were to say one of my two times great-grandfathers was black, born in Mauritius, the son of Mozambican slaves?
Ah, I thought not. It’s all about the visuals isn’t it?
Next, short blonde hair? Yep, but largely thanks to an excellent hairdresser who knows precisely what dye to use to make it so. Middle-aged?
Nuh, sorry, way past the point of no return, having already rounded the bend and heading full speed down the home straight.
Entitled? Sure! About as entitled as a pruned tree demanding a prosthetic limb! Opinionated?
Now there’s one I can agree to. So, having scored just two out of five, I may have failed the Karen test but seriously doubt being given a particular moniker by parents at birth would have contributed to me being any of the above. I rather think it’s in the genes, and in my case, inherited from parents who weren’t afraid to speak their minds and stand up for their beliefs.
And any so-called “Karen-ness” could also be attributed to the generations of strong women in our family.
One great-grandmother who fought for the rights of Australian women to get the vote, subsequently granted in Victoria in 1908. Another two times greatgrandmother who, coming from a privileged life in Ireland, married and gave birth to most of her children in draughty tents amidst the noisy, dusty chaos of Victoria’s Mount Blackwood goldfields.
A great-granny who, widowed in her late 30s, refused to let stiff Victorian proprieties stand in her way when she fell in love with a man 20 years her junior, had three children, then married him at a registry office in 1900. Sure that didn’t go unnoticed.
And a mother, short in stature but with the heart of a lion, who lovingly raised eight kids, including one son severely affected
UNLIKE NIGEL NO FRIENDS, LAZY SUSAN, DEBBIE DOWNER, DOPEY DORA AND NOT HAPPY JAN, KAREN DID NOT COME WITH A SINGLE DEFINING CHARACTERISTIC, BUT A WHOLE BUCKETLOAD!
with cerebral palsy for the 15 years of his short life, never waning in her care.
This is the legacy handed down through generations by the women in our family who often went against the norm and showed great strength of character.
And if that’s what being a Karen is really all about, then bring it on.
At the same time I can hear you asking, “Have you ever complained to the manager?”
No, but if I did, I’d have good reason.
I’d also use another name!
1688
King James II of England flees from London after William of Orange’s forces overwhelm the country. William later takes the throne.
1792
A sick Captain Arthur Phillip sails from Sydney for England, taking two Aborigines, Bennelong and Yemmerrawanne, with him. 1816
Britain restores Java, Indonesia, to the Netherlands after having seized the territory during the Napoleonic
Wars.
1936
Prince Albert becomes King George VI of England after his elder brother, Edward VIII, abdicates to marry US divorcee Wallis Simpson. 1941
Single men aged 18-45 and married men 18-35 called up for full-time war duty. 1941
Germany and
Italy declare war on the US, which takes reciprocal action, in World War II, four days after the attack on Pearl Harbour. 1946
The United Nations establishes its International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) to help children living in countries devastated by war.
1961
US military helicopter forces arrive in Saigon after President John F. Kennedy orders the first direct US action in the Vietnam War. 1972
Two US astronauts on the Apollo 17 mission land on the moon to begin exploring its surface. Eugene Cernan and
Harrison Schmitt arrive three years after Neil Armstrong landed. 1990
Former detective Sergeant Roger Rogerson, 49, walks free from Long Bay Jail after winning an appeal against his conviction for conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.
2005
A protest rally (pictured) at Cronulla Beach turns into a drunken riot, featuring bashings of people of Middle Eastern appearance.