If you are familiar with the Karen meme, then Kevins are men who exhibit entitled behavior – often being loud, rude or hateful online. Kevins tend to make themselves known easily online.
As of 2020, Karen the male counterpart has yet to be officially designated; however, we’ve established that this name has long been associated with viral videos depicting male actors acting in unacceptable or even offensive ways.
Definition
Kevin is an Irish boy’s name that is widely popular in the United States. Kevin is an anglicized version of Caoimhin, an ancient Irish word which comes from two elements meaning handsome and birth respectively – meaning the name has been around since at least the seventh century! It boasts an intriguing history dating back centuries!
Kevin is a popular name among boys, and its meaning can be traced to 6th-century Irish saint Kevin who established a monastery in Dublin, Ireland as well as becoming a hermit and eventually saint.
Kevins are individuals who exhibit entitled behavior similar to that seen in Karens, often appearing in viral videos. Kevins can especially be found in America; there’s even an Instagram account called KevinsGoingWild dedicated to documenting these actions.
People using the @kevinsgoingwild handle often expose the behavior of entitled individuals on social media, drawing others’ attention and encouraging change in these men’s behavior. It is an effective way of getting attention for this problem and sparking change within these male individuals themselves.
Kevinsgoingwild handles also use @kevinsgoingwild to highlight white women who act in racist ways – often known as Karens and often found in viral videos such as Kidz Bop Karen.”
On numerous occasions, “Karens” have been caught on camera calling the police on Black and Latino residents of her home, or engaging in confrontation with Black or Latino protestors who are actively protesting.
These actions have resulted in numerous lawsuits. Karens have filed grievances over masks, with one even filing suit against a Starbucks employee for refusing service to her.
Some may perceive Karen to be an offensive name used by groups to portray white women negatively; but in actuality this name has been in use in English since centuries and should not be treated in such an offensive fashion.
Origin
Kevin is an Irish surname meaning “handsome.” It was the name of a famous seventh-century saint who founded an Irish monastery and received this nickname. Kevin comes from two elements coem and gein which translate as “kind, gentle, and attractive.”
Kevin Smith is a comedian; Kevin James is an actor; and Kevin Bacon played the villainous counterpart on Breaking Bad. Though Kevin is commonly used as an insult against men exhibiting entitled behavior, it can also be used as an offensive term against any individual or group of individuals.
Black Twitter has made it even easier to spread this trend, which originated in American culture where women tend to be held to higher standards than men. According to Andre Brock, an associate professor of computer science at Georgia Tech and Yahoo Life contributor, this phenomenon may stem from American society where there may be greater expectations placed upon female employees than men.
But that doesn’t automatically make a name derogatory, according to Cleve Evans, professor of onomastics at Bellevue University in Nebraska and told Yahoo Life that names often serve as shorthand for something more specific than a single word can convey.
Given the prevalence of social media shorthand, Kevin could have originated this way; however, its current popularity likely stems from cultural associations with rude entitlement and coronavirus infection.
Karmacop97, a 17-year-old from Irvine, California, launched an online forum called Fuck_You_Karen as an elaborate practical joke two years ago. However, soon thereafter it garnered thousands of enraged comments from users who felt targeted for engaging in behavior associated with “Karen.”
Karen may connote feminine connotations but it was originally used to criticize women perceived as demanding or assertive; for instance, wearing clothing that she thought too dressy; insisting upon meeting with their manager about minor problems at work etc.
Meaning
Karen is an offensive term often used to refer to middle-class white women perceived as entitled or demanding beyond what is normal. It often appears in memes depicting these women who use their privilege to get what they want – such as demanding to speak to “the manager”, wearing particular bob cut hairstyles and engaging in racist microaggressions (such as asking to touch black people’s hair).
Recently, behavior driven by an entitlement mindset has become more and more commonplace in public spaces. Additionally, @karensgoingwilds on social media has amassed hundreds of videos documenting such acts.
“Karen” first made an appearance on Twitter in the 2000s, yet its widespread adoption only recently reached an all-time high. Today it refers to a specific type of middle-class white woman – typically one with children – who exhibit behaviors stemming from her privilege; some more obvious than others; but fundamentally using white privilege to demand what they want.
Karens have been accused of grilling charcoal in parks, policing nonwhite people’s behavior or demanding to speak with higher authorities who can get what they want for them. Some have even been called out for engaging in racist microaggressions such as asking to touch black people’s hair.
One such video from 2020 depicted a white woman, later dubbed “Central Park Karen,” calling the police on a black man for birdwatching in Central Park. Her actions were widely mocked on social media.
Recent usage of “Karen” comes primarily from an emerging class of white women who tend to be overzealous and self-righteous; such individuals frequently post incoherent rants on social media.
After these incidents occur, an apology may follow to admit the wrongdoing, yet their anger quickly turns violent as seen in this recent video of two personal-injury lawyers from St Louis brandishing guns at peaceful protestors passing by their home.
Examples
Karen is a commonly-used term to refer to women who abuse their social status and privilege in order to harass or intimidate other individuals, often by bullying waiters and clerks from different races or backgrounds. It has become a catch-all insult; often used when middle-aged women use this power dynamic against them in this way.
The term, coined in 2017 when a Reddit user parodied an angry husband’s tirades against his former spouse, quickly became a popular meme and meme itself by 2020. Since then it has come to represent anyone using their privilege for unfair gain to harass others.
Karen may sport a classic bob haircut with or without a hairband and wear elegant knee-length ironed skirts and flat ballerina shoes, all while possessing a somewhat narrow or repressed mind that is easily provoked.
She may be a soccer mom, divorcee, anti-vaxxer or racist among other things – whatever her identity might be – using her privilege and suppressed mind to feel superior to others.
Example 2 is coronavirus Karen, who refused to wear a mask, denied vaccine effectiveness and played victim and privilege cards during the pandemic. She refused quarantine as well and thought everything was an elaborate hoax; furthermore she refused vaccinations for her children.
Recently, an Internet has seen the debut of an equivalent male figure for Karen: Ken is often suggested while others believe Greg or Kevin should be used instead.
Though it is impossible to know for certain, it appears likely that male Karens have yet to gain much traction due to their relative late arrival compared to their female counterparts. While there are a few subreddits devoted to Karens with hundreds of threads per month dedicated to female Karens, male Karen posts have far outnumbered those for female Karens in terms of posting activity.
One factor could be associated with Karen being associated with sexuality; indeed, its popularity is dropping steadily to almost become extinct.
