Lately, I’ve seen videos of white women acting so privileged they make Ivanka Trump look like Little Orphan Annie. Our culture calls these privileged gals “Karen” a nametag for women without any power who exert their white privilege over others. Karens have been very popular, lately, flying their bitchy little flags for all to see.
One Karen called police on a black man bird watching in Central Park after he asked her to leash her dog. One summoned cops to a black family having a barbecue in the park. A Karen in a Queens bagel shop coughed on a patron when she asked her to put on a face mask. Omg, there’s more. One Karen called the cops on a man in a Wal-Mart parking lot, claiming he was an illegal Mexican who jumped out of the bushes to attack her. (He wasn’t and didn’t.) All these white women smeared their targets with indignant white privilege like a steaming pile of dog poop on a hot-pink flip-flip.
Although, what we’re witnessing is not just white privilege. Its American privilege. When these white women spew hate, say filthy things and act self-righteous, they’re showing off their American privilege, clutching their Smartphone as their weapon of choice. When people don’t wear face masks and complain about sheltering-in-place for the good of others, they’re showing off their American privilege. The current administration in the White House? American privilege. These Americans never question their own behavior. Why should they? Their arrogant American privilege assures them they’re always right.
Sound familiar?
Our Liar-in-Chief has succeeded in one thing—dividing Americans into us and them. He vilifies Democrats, women, and people of color, and he delights in turning Americans against each other. He muddies the water with his lies. He clouds the truth with distraction. He uses hate like a hat trick, and his hate sheds on everything he touches like the coronavirus – some people catch it; others are spared.
One thing’s for sure. Old 45’s hateful press junkets in the Rose Garden, his ugly speeches at political rallies, his vicious, lying tweets have given his followers the green light to spew their hate freely, like the Karens, and the KKK, and the right-wing militia that stormed the Wisconsin Capital building, and the mobs who marched on Charlottesville where a young woman was killed, and the list goes on-and-on.
When will it stop?
Out of all this division, it seems Baby Boomers are taking the rap for a lot of it, as if the reason our country is in such a terrible place right now is somehow every Boomer’s fault. It seems Millennials don’t respect Boomers. If they did, you wouldn’t hear that crack, “Ok, Boomer!” Maybe it’s because they’re so young, they don’t really know what Boomers went through in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, and how they helped change the course of America’s history.
In the 1960s, Boomers took part in civil rights protests. In the 1970s, Boomers helped bring gay rights out of the closet and into the forefront. We would still be dealing with gay men dying in record numbers from AIDS if Boomers in the ‘80s didn’t protest and fight back when President Ronald Reagan turned a blind eye to the AIDS crisis. And, there would be no #MeToo movement if women Boomers back in the day didn’t slap away their sexist bosses hands from their asses, and speak up when their workplace rights were violated.
I’m not saying all Boomers are great people. Many Republican Boomers put our Bully-in-Chief in office, and trust me, Boomers like me don’t like those Boomers either. But not all Boomers are alike. You gotta trust me on this. Please don’t clump me with the Trumpies!
How long will America keep going down this rabbit hole of “hate one another” until we draw a line in the sand? How long will we continue to compartmentalize people, group them according to stereotype, and base our judgements on those stereotypes? How long will we continue to hold on to the American privilege we carry around like a badge of honor until we realize our country will never heal unless we look within ourselves and find that person we used to be when we cared about other people.
Instead of putting ourselves in categories like Karens, Beckys, Chads and Julios, maybe it’s time to celebrate our differences. Our country was not all misery like it is now, divided by the haves and have nots, the Boomers vs. the Millennials. America is so much more than the rich and privileged in Washington. America is a country of people of all political leanings, all religions, all races, all colors, all sexual orientations, and all incomes. Each and every one of us deserves a seat at the table.
So, where do we go from here?
There’s still time to make things right. We must vote on Nov. 3, that’s it. That’s the only way we can catapult our Ass-Clown-in-Chief out of the Oval Office and into the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. Think of it as the bellyflop heard ‘round the world. Then, and only then, will we begin the turnaround that will save our democracy. Otherwise, who knows? We could face four more years with our Divider-in-Chief and end up like the rest of the Karens, screaming about injustice as Vice President Vladimir Putin ships us off to Siberia clutching our Smartphones.
See you next week!
Photo by Fermin Mendoza
What a refreshing piece