The Brief: Some members of Gen Z have started calling Gen X the "Karen Generation," referencing a stereotype of a white mom who's always demanding to speak to the manager.

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DEEP DIVE

Ok, Karen.

According to a Buzzfeed News article by Lauren Strapagiel, members of Gen Z have started insulting their parents’ generation by calling it “Generation Karen.” The name Karen is a reference to a widespread meme about middle-class white women who act in such entitled ways as being rude to service workers or calling the cops on their neighbors. The proliferation of the term “The Karen Generation” exemplifies that no generation is safe from intergenerational rivalry and name-calling. Baby Boomers call Millennials and Zoomers snowflakes, who in turn respond Ok Boomer, or occasionally, Ok Trumper. While Gen X had preciously caught a break from ridicule from the other generations, the Karen moniker proves otherwise.

The Buzzfeed article “Gen Z Is Calling Gen X The ‘Karen Generation'” cites several instances in which young people have labeled their parents’ generation as a group of “Karens,” due to their perceived close-mindedness, acceptance of the status quo, and the fact that Karen is a fairly popular first name of people born between 1961 and 1981.

Karens React

While some Gen X-ers are clearly upset with this label, others point out that Gen X-ers’ tendency towards apathy mean they won’t be shaken by this insult. The Karen title has become a badge of honor for some Gen X-ers who have crowned Karen Walker of Will & Grace as the ultimate Karen spokeswoman and heroine.