KAREN is an adorable but dangerous depiction of white women who abuse their privilege, such as Manning who plays Karen while Dorman makes for an excellent racist cop.
1. Shelley Lewis at Gelson’s
Shelley Lewis recently made headlines for refusing to wear a mask at Gelson’s supermarket in Dana Point, Orange County as per California Governor Gavin Newsom’s guidelines; this policy required customers and employees to don masks; but Lewis claims she has a medical condition which prevents her from doing so and she plans on filing a suit against Gelson’s for discriminating against her.
This video, shared first to Facebook and later to Reddit’s r/PublicFreakout subreddit, shows Lewis clashing with Gelson’s managers over their mask requirement policy. While one manager attempts to explain that state regulations require Gelson’s to implement their policy for everyone’s safety, she remains unimpressed and accuses them of violating HIPAA by giving out her personal medical data; their manager replied calmly by explaining that Gelson’s was not covered under HIPAA because Gelson’s was not considered health plan, health clearinghouse or provider and that HIPAA only protects information shared among those covered under its protection rules.
No one knows if Lewis’s medical condition prevents her from wearing a mask, but she was clearly trying to provoke Gelson’s workers and attract attention online by refusing to put one on. Heavy did some investigating and discovered Lewis is an avid flat earth believer; she even attended and spoke at a flat earth conference this year! This may help explain her lack of interest in donning her mask in order to draw more attention online. After receiving backlash online she deleted the video after it started receiving criticism and has since deactivated her Facebook account hopefully learning lessons about using technology rather than taking out frustrations on others directly.
2. Robin at the Hair Salon
Sharon Spellman from Bombshell Salon Suites in Simi Valley, California has garnered much praise for how she handled an aggressive client in a viral video. Spellman shared it on TikTok where it has since gone viral; during it a white woman known only as “Robin” refused services from Alex because she is Latina; after an exchange during which Spellman insisted the client speak politely she lunged at Spellman with both arms raised to her neck in what can only be described as an aggressive move from Robin who seemed both annoyed and upset by this exchange before lunging at Spellman demanded respectable behavior before lungeing at Spellman had insisted upon speaking respectfully during which Spellman insisted upon respecting Spellman insisted and she lunged at Spellman who then lunged back at Spellman before turning around to face her with both hands out in what has since gone viral since being exposed by this video of Sharon Spellman shared on TikTok that went viral when she faced off against another Latina client who refused services from another assistant Alex but refused services because she is Latina herself and refused them because she is Latina herself and lunging at Spellman to insisting upon speaking respectfully and insisting upon speaking respectfully she finally lunges towards him before lunging towards him and Spellman finally insisting upon speaking respectfully she lunges against Robin who attempted to lunges at him and lunged her as well, leaving angrieful in both cases and took one another shot taken out while in one another client at her before lunging outspoilling Alex, only then when Spellman had insisted upon being Latina herself being Latina herself had rejected services provided from Spellman insists not from Latina who wasn’s assistant who couldn’t him/her out when then lunging up before lunged him before finally spoke up speaking respectfully insisting spoke to voiced back out at her and lunged forward who had insisted upon whom Spellman then lunging him out before lunged against one finally spoke up before lunging against Spellmans to insisting said when Robin lunging her at before lunging when Spellman made enough. Finally Spellman eventually having met their presence by then having spoken respectfully enough of course before before.
Spellman later shared on Instagram Live that she has worked with Robin for years and that their interactions had always been challenging; this particular appointment marked the first time Robin refused service due to an assistant’s race.
Spellman then admonishes her for her aggressive behavior and warns her that she will be banned from the salon indefinitely if this behavior persists. Additionally, she promises that more footage from security cameras of this incident will be made public.
Sharon’s video has gone viral and been watched over 25 million times at this writing. People have applauded Sharon’s professionalism in standing up against racist customers who try to get away with inappropriate behavior.
This video serves as a powerful reminder of just how ridiculous any form of racism in 2020 is, and we hope that more people take to calling out such behavior when they see it, while supporting organizations that strive for equal treatment of everyone. –Moses Znaimer is a multimedia journalist at Insider.
3. The Anti-Masker at Walmart
One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, anti-mask Karens remain widespread. A video posted to Reddit and then spread virally shows an unidentified woman engaging in a heated exchange with staff at Walmart over their mask policy. When someone filming interjects to say that customers wearing masks without permission could eventually cause closure of the store, Karen quickly responds by criticizing their hair before walking off without further discussion or confrontation online.
We would all agree it’s about time this lady was removed from the building kicking and screaming; her public tantrum deserves instant karma. Watch the clip below; you won’t believe what she says!
4. The QAnon Karen
As the Covid-19 pandemic drove people further apart, one woman was drawn into a world of far-right conspiracy theories. Melissa Rein Lively claims she initially supported President Donald Trump before falling down QAnon’s “rabbit hole.” QAnon is an expansive online theory that incorporates multiple conspiracy theories into one coherent whole that has inspired protests and torn families apart.
This theory revolves around Q, an anonymous self-described government insider. Q has posted clues on 4chan and 8chan (now 8kun) suggesting the presence of a Satan-worshipping cabal of pedophiles running an international child sex trafficking operation – effectively expanding upon Pizzagate, an earlier theory alleging Hillary Clinton of running such an operation out of her basement.
Fake news sites and the belief in President Trump as a hero stoking it have all played into this narrative, increasing its appeal. This belief is further cemented by their belief in a conspiracy against him being dismantled through him taking down an evil cabal and solving world issues.
Lee: One QAnon fanatic is angered that Target is selling masks; according to QAnon mythology, masks serve to suppress speech and make truth unhearable. She documented herself going into a Scottsdale, Arizona Target and smashing all the face masks on display — she believes she was ordered by Trump and QAnon powers to do this action.
Staffers tried to ask her to stop but she declined; at one point claiming the store was harassing her over her “$40,000 Rolex.” In the end, local police arrested her and forced her to give up her phone and YouTube channel to them.
5. The Black Lives Matter Karen
Karens have always been popular names, but in recent years their significance has become even greater. Today they’re widely understood to mean entitled, pushy white women who call the police on people of color doing simple activities like walking down a sidewalk – so much so that an entire subreddit, known as r/EntitledKarens, was created just for this group of individuals!
Lisa Alexander was recently labeled as ‘Karen’ following an online video where she called police on a man for chalking ‘Black Lives Matter’ outside his house in San Francisco – an incident not unknown to social justice activism – for doing just this. Alexander responded by deactivating all social media accounts associated with her company and ceasing all further partnerships. Her shame has resulted in at least one beauty company cutting all ties with her business.
David Tarleton and Adria Dawn, the filmmaking duo behind Karen, made it in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. As Tarleton/Dawn Productions, they wrote, directed, and starred together; other projects they have worked on include plays, web series, and short films.
