Domino’s in Australia is offering all women named Karen free pizzas before Friday.
The pizza chain has said it wants to reclaim that name “Karen” after it became synonymous with middle-aged white women who want to speak to the manager.
What started out as a joke has since led to “Karen” being linked to a range of viral videos featuring women making racial slurs and refusing to wear face coverings.
Domino’s has responded by deciding to offer real-life Karens the opportunity to claim their name back.
The chain is offering free pizza to 100 Australians named Karen before Friday.
In order to claim the freebie, all people have to do is upload a copy of their photo identification and tell Domino’s in 250 words or less why they are one of the “nice” Karens.
Allan Collins, Domino’s chief marketing officer for Australia and New Zealand, explained that the company wanted to take “the name Karen back”.
“In 2020, ‘Karen’ is no longer content to speak to the manager. Now, she’s dobbing in her neighbours, refusing to quarantine, or wear a mask,” he said.
“Consequently, the name ‘Karen’ has become synonymous with anyone who is entitled, selfish and likes to complain. What used to be a lighthearted meme has become quite the insult to anyone actually named Karen.
“Well, today we’re taking the name Karen back. At Domino’s, we’re all about bringing people together and we want to celebrate all the great Karens out there by shouting them a free pizza!”
The offer comes after a Starbucks customer was labelled “Karen” on social media after she was refused service for not wearing a mask.
Last month, Amber Gilles posted a photograph of San Diego barista Lenin Gutierrez on Facebook with the caption: “Meet lenen from Starbucks who refused to serve me cause I’m not wearing a mask. Next time I will wait for cops and bring a medical exemption.”
Gilles’ post attracted widespread criticism, with commenters rallying together to support Gutierrez – she has since made her Facebook page private so her post can no longer be seen.
One person in Orange County, Matt Cowan, was even inspired to launch a GoFundMe page to raise tip money for Gutierrez. It has now reached more than $105,000 (£81,702).
