'Don't call me Karen' | Uber suspends D&I chief over sessions about white women stereotypes

Uber has suspended its diversity and inclusion chief over controversy around a Zoom session entitled ‘Don’t Call Me Karen’, which focused on the experiences of white women in the context of the slang word.

The session was a part of a series of conversations called ‘Moving Forward’, overlooked by the D&I chief Bo Young Lee, focusing on race, gender, identity and class – and highlighted the experiences of a small group of women leaders.

‘Karen’ has been used online as a slang word to represent an obnoxious, angry woman – typically white and middle-aged – who uses their entitlement and privilege to be demanding or critical. A key feature of the ‘Karen’ stereotype is that they weaponise their privilege against people of colour specifically.

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Often, videos depicting a ‘Karen’ shows her making unreasonable complaints to managers of businesses, or against black people for minor or non-existent incidents.