Tired of Karen

As I write this, I’m fuming from a phone call I just had with a friend.

My friend is an executive employee at an international company and is a person of color.

This friend has, for most of his career, been a mover and a shaker, working his way up from copy room attendant fresh out of college back in the 90’s, to now Chief/VP status. Though he has accomplished many goals in his career, there still seems to be a rift between him and white women who tend to work in offices where he’s held positions. No matter the state, city, or region of the country, there is always one woman who takes it upon herself to try to keep him in place. (They don’t like “magical negroes.”)

According to dictinary.com

Karen is a pejorative slang term for an obnoxious, angry, entitled, and often racist middle-aged white woman who uses her privilege to get her way or to police other people’s behaviors…

In 2020, Karen spread as a label used to call out white women who were captured in viral videos engaging in what are widely seen as racists acts.

Now, this friend works up 60 hours a week and knows with that much responsibility there comes a lot of commitment. He’s had women, and there’s always one, call him at home asking when he’s going to be at work. He should’ve been there by now. Why can’t he adhere to the schedule everyone else has, etc. Why? Because they are just being nosy and don’t believe he should have that kind of flexibility. (Only Toms and Bills can “roll like that.”)

Well, today, he received an email of all things saying his hours should be from here – to there daily. Mind you, we are in a global pandemic and I forgot to add, this friend travels from one state to another for this job, leaving his family behind weekly in order to provide for them because this is the job that was available during a time of global economic hardship.

This message was not from his superior who would be the CEO of the company. It was from someone who for all intents and purposes, would report to him indirectly.

Let me clarify something, the office is not only seven hours away, it’s in a different state. The majority of the staff is working remotely, some being in different states and countries at that.

Having said all of that, I’ll pose this question: Why the hell does Karen have to tell him what the office hours are for a company he runs along with the CEO?

I’ll tell you why. It’s because he’s a black man who despite being an executive of the company still needs to be “checked” by white women who need to keep their nosey asses on the other side of the fence and let people live their lives.

Why does she need to check him? Why can’t he enjoy the perks of his position as white men in America have enjoyed for years? The CEO isn’t telling him when and where to be because the CEO hired him to do a job he believed my friend could do based on his experience at other companies. He hired him based on his experience, background, references, etc. I’ve seen this friend struggle with this BS most of his career and it’s exhausting.

It’s so damn exhausting being black in America.

Karens need to take two seats and back up off a brother (or a sister.)

DGR