21st International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities & Nations

Abstract

Despite international attempts to reduce the insidiousness of oppression, racism remains a seemingly immovable fixture in American society. Research has revealed that White Americans hold negative racial attitudes and often experience resistance against examining White privilege (Bowman, 2010). Missing is an analysis of gendered racism between White women and Black men. The authors use prototype victim and prototype perpetrator research to help broaden understanding of White female public displays of racism against Black men. The year 2020 presented global challenges with the interface of a pandemic alongside the resurgence of visual displays of historical racism. The differences in how White women publicly demonstrate their racism has surfaced frequently with the aid of technology. This new depiction of the White woman has been coined the ‘Karen.’ The term “Karen” is simply the label for adult White women who are perceived to behave in a racist way in public. Prototype research is used to expand the construct understanding of gendered racism between ‘Karen’ and Black men. This discussion is timely considering current spotlight on the BlackLivesMatter movement in response to the killing of Black men, Black women, and Black Trans and non-binary individuals. Such an analysis also has important clinical implications as the ethnic/racial diversity in the United States (U.S.) is increasing (Pew Research Center, 2016), thereby also increasing the cultural heterogeneity of those seeking counseling services. Thus we advance that understanding gendered racism is important in the provision of psychological services to diverse individuals.