Top 20 Times Karens RUINED Their Own Careers

NOTE TO VO ARTIST: Pls don’t forget the line after #1!

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most infamous times the rudest, most entitled people, better known as Karens, caused havoc and destroyed their reputations and jobs in the process.

#20: Koughing Karen

The COVID-19 pandemic and the measures put in to reduce exposure was a wild time for Karen content. In 2021, a mother and her child were at a Super Saver store in Lincoln, Nebraska. Instead of having a calm time getting groceries, they met Janene Hoskovec. With the family trying to keep their distance, Hoskovec decided to cough at them with a smug smile and then patronizingly call them “cute.” When she was called out for coughing, she claimed it was “allergies.” Hoskovec mocked the family and others for donning masks by calling them “sheep” and denying COVID-19’s existence. When Hoskovec’s employer, the software company SAP, saw the video, they fired her after a brief investigation.

#19: Mask Madness

Rather than go with a time-out, a group of Karens decided terrifying the children under their care was the way to go. In 2022, workers at Lil' Blessing Childcare in Hamilton, Mississippi, recorded how they punished kids who didn’t “clean up” or “act good.” The employees donned a Halloween mask, popped up in front of a child, and then yelled. Understandably, there was a lot of backlash, especially from the parents. The owner of the childcare facility quickly fired those involved. In 2023, Lil' Blessing was fined $450 by the Mississippi Department of Health. As for those involved, they were criminally charged. Five women received various sentences, involving jail time and fines.

#18: Acting Bigot

In 2019, Seyi Omooba was set to star as Celie in a UK stage production of “The Color Purple.” However, fellow actor Aaron Lee Lambert, who wasn’t in the play, shared a homophobic Facebook post from Omooba in 2014 that used religion to justify her problematic views. What made this worse was that Omooba denied Celie is a lesbian despite the character being in a same-sex relationship. This resulted in the actor being dropped from the production and by her agency. Rather than move on, Omooba, with the aid of her father’s group Christian Concern, sued for religious discrimination, breach of contract, and harassment. In 2021, she lost the tribunal and had to pay over £300,000. In 2024, after appealing, Omooba lost again.

#17: Principal Racism

Graduation is an important time in any student’s life. After years of studying, they now get celebrated as they move on to the next phase. Well, in 2015, students at the TNT Academy in Stone Mountain, Georgia, had their graduation tainted by the principal, Nancy Gordeuk. After she made the mistake of dismissing students before the valedictorian’s speech and trying to get them back, Gordeuk called the confused attendees “rude” and then stated, “Look who's leaving, all the Black people.” Yikes. In her apology email to parents, Gordeuk blamed “the devil in the house” for her words. Her son, on the other hand, used racial slurs on social media when defending his mother. Days later, TNT Academy fired Gordeuk.

#16: Collier Karen

When you picture an educator who works with special-needs children, you imagine a calm, tolerant, and empathetic person. Then there’s Patricia Schmidt. In 2021, a mother and her child were walking down a street in Naples, Florida. Schmidt soon pulled up in her car, rolled down the window, and screamed at the pair for walking in a private neighborhood. After allegedly using a derogatory term for someone with learning difficulties, Schmidt also threw in a middle finger, alongside racial insults and slurs during her unhinged rant. Due to this, she was fired as an Exceptional Student Education Specialist by the Collier County Public Schools.

#15: Caren the Karen

Give a Karen a dash of authority and everyone will suffer. In 2018, police in Tenafly, New Jersey, pulled over a car with an out-of-date registration and looked to impound it. One of the occupants was the daughter of Caren Turner, a commissioner with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Turner arrived to collect her daughter and name-dropped her political friends, insisted the cops refer to her as “commissioner,” and tried to intimidate the officers with threats about their jobs. Sadly for Turner, it was all caught on the cops’ dashcam. After issuing a half-apology, Turner was forced to resign from her role. She was later fined $1500 by the New Jersey State Ethics Commission.

#14: Pepper-Spray Uber

Sometimes, you never know when your friend will show their true, Karen-y ways. In 2024, Jennifer Guilbeault and a friend got into Shohel Mahmud’s Uber in Manhattan, New York. While at a stop light, Mahmud began praying in Arabic. Guilbeault quickly flung forward from her seat and pepper-sprayed the driver in the face repeatedly as he fought to get away. After getting over her shock, the friend helped stop Guilbeault’s attack. According to Mahmud, when the friend asked Guilbeault why she did it, she stated it was because he was brown. On top of being criminally charged for her attack, which she pleaded not guilty to, Guilbeault was fired from the public relations company D Pagan Communications.

#13: Key Fob Kelly

In 2018, D'Arreion Toles returned to the complex he lived at in St. Louis, Missouri, late one night. Instead of getting inside and relaxing, he was met at the door by Hilary Mueller. Armed with a tiny dog, she refused to let Toles, a Black man, inside. Instead, Mueller questioned him on whether he lived there and demanded to see his key fob. After Toles eventually got in, it still wasn’t over as Mueller followed him to his apartment. She also called the cops on him. When she was interviewed over the racist scandal, Mueller claimed she didn’t do anything wrong and was following the rules of the complex. Her employers, real estate firm Tribeca-STL, didn’t see it that way and fired Mueller.

#12: San Fran Karen

In 2020, to show his support, James Juanillo stenciled “Black Lives Matter” with chalk on the property he lived at in San Francisco, California. Straight away, Lisa Alexander made her presence known and began interrogating Juanillo on whether he lived there. Backed by her friend Robert Larkin, who was also recording the event, the duo lied about knowing the property owner despite that person actually being Juanillo. The entitled pair then called the cops on him. Due to the outrage over racially profiling Juanillo, Alexander’s company, LaFace Skincare, lost business opportunities. Larkin was fired from wealth management firm Raymond James. In 2024, now working with a crisis management team, Alexander went on “Dr. Phil Primetime” to complain about being “canceled.”

#11: Fashion Karen

In 2024, a teenager and her friends were enjoying a night out at a restaurant in St. George, Utah. Suddenly, she felt cold hands on her skin which were yanking down her skirt. The icy mitts belonged to Ida Lorenzo. She claimed the teenager was exposing herself to children due to her skirt being, in Lorenzo’s opinion, too short. Lorenzo then mentioned she worked for the state, flashed an ID badge, and threatened to call CPS. After footage of her antics went viral, Lorenzo was fired as a legal secretary at the Utah Attorney General’s Office. After being charged with battery and agreeing to a plea deal, she’ll escape a prison sentence as long as she doesn’t break the law again for a year.

#10: DJ Disaster

In 2020, Dianna Ploss was a conservative talk radio host with WSMN who regularly talked about her admiration for Donald Trump. But then she threw that career away as she walked down the street in New Hampshire and harassed busy landscape workers. And all it took was hearing the employees speak Spanish. Ploss recorded the interaction as she accused the workers of being in the country illegally, and demanded that they speak English in America. She also decided this proved the government was doing communism…right. When a stranger stepped in, Ploss berated him for wearing a face mask amid a pandemic and pointed out his race. When WSMN heard about this incident, they dropped her show from the station.

#9: Anti-Tourist Karen

There’s a popular saying that drunk words sober thoughts. Well, in 2023, a seemingly inebriated Brianna Pinnix was recorded on a train in New York City by another passenger. She went on an ever-increasing aggressive and xenophobic rant at a group of German tourists as she towered over them, claiming immigrants shouldn’t come into the country. Pinnix’s partner tried to calm the situation and talk Train Karen down by warning her she could be arrested. He even threatened to leave her. Shortly after the viral incident, Pinnix’s employer, pharmaceutical company Capital Rx, fired her from her job as a senior talent acquisition specialist as they have a “zero-tolerance policy around prejudicial or discriminatory behavior.”

#8: Pool Patrol Paula

Thanks to cell phones, people can record horrible interactions with Karens to get justice. For example, Stephanie Sebby-Strempel, better known as Pool Patrol Paula, had her terrible behavior at a Summerville, South Carolina, community swimming pool in 2018 exposed. She was seen shouting at Black teenagers with racist overtones, demanding they leave despite being someone’s guests, and threatening to call 911. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Sebby-Strempel was filmed pushing one of them. One victim also said she used racial slurs and continued to be violent. Sebby-Strempel made it worse when she attacked law enforcement. She later pleaded guilty to assault, and was fined $1000. On top of that, the skincare group Rodan + Fields ceased working with Sebby-Strempel, who was an independent contractor.

#7: Park Ranger Karen

Simply enjoying a hobby legally? Apparently that’s enough to get a Karen to involve herself. In 2023, Anthony Gibson captured Tanya Petty, bothering him as he fished at a lake in Georgia. She began by stating it was for residents, which Gibson is. With little resistance, Petty announced he wasn’t allowed to record her, and that she’d give law enforcement his license plate number. Unfortunately, Gibson stated this was the third time someone had harassed him for fishing in his neighborhood. The video eventually got the attention of Sea Glass Therapy, whom Petty worked for as an independent contractor. The company dropped her, stating they “stand against discrimination of all forms.”

#6: Taco Tina

Some Karens hate it when someone stands up for themselves, even when they’ve committed a crime. In 2023, employees of the Ortiz Tacos stand in Los Angeles, California, felt the wrath of Renee Latrice Hines after asking her to pay for her food. Hines was recorded uttering insults while relentlessly attacking the people, even hurling a sign at the individual filming for showing her license plate. Unsurprisingly, she was arrested and charged on several counts. But that’s not all! Hines had been working as a temporary contractor for Yusen Logistics America through the company Simplified Labor Staff Solutions. Yusen fired Hines for her horrid attack.

#5: Anti-Protest Karen

In 2020, a Black Lives Matter protest took place in Tennessee. But Sonya Holt was not happy about it for some reason. The vile anti-protester was filmed screaming homophobic and racist insults at people, many of which are too terrible to repeat. She also had support from those around her, who were uttering obscenities that are just as disturbing. When the video got out, Holt tried to walk back her grim remarks by apologizing in a news interview. However, her employers, the Keith Family Vision Clinic, were less than impressed. They didn’t let their business’s reputation get dragged through the mud by association though, promptly firing her.

#4: McDonald's Mayhem

Most people go to McDonald's to grab food and leave. No drama, just some burger-y goodness. But in 2023, a chain in Fresno, California, didn’t have a calm time. Gina Aiello allegedly got into an argument with staff over a soda. When Luis Aceves, another customer, stepped in and criticized her for being disrespectful, Aiello bellowed a racist insult at him before storming out of the building. It was soon discovered she worked at the dental office of Dr. Jack Ohanesian. First, Aiello was put on leave as Ohanesian and co. investigated. A few days later, Ohanesian publicly revealed she had been fired, citing his proud heritage of his great-grandfather coming to the States from Armenia and experiencing prejudice.

#3: Permit Patty

When kids show initiative and want to create a business, they should be praised for doing so. But in 2018, Alison Ettel shut down a young Black girl selling water bottles in San Francisco, California. Claiming to be enraged by the noise as she worked from home, Ettel confronted Jordan Rodgers, demanding to see her permit. Ettel then called the cops about the situation, something she denied actually doing. However, it was later proven that she did speak to dispatchers. After being mocked online and deemed “Permit Patty,” Ettel’s business, TreatWell Health, reportedly hired a crisis manager to assess the situation. In the end, she had to resign as its CEO due to the horrible publicity and loss of business she had created.

#2: SouthPark Susan

In 2018, sisters Leisa and Mary Garris were waiting for AAA in the parking lot of an apartment building in Charlotte, North Carolina. But then Susan Westwood arrived. The seemingly intoxicated Karen ranted at the duo with plenty of racism and bragged about her high-paying job. She even threatened the sisters with violence. Westwood faced several charges, which she pled guilty to, and received 12 months of probation alongside other punishments. She was also fired from her employment at Spectrum Enterprises. This incident, mixed with further issues, reportedly helped Westwood see she needed to get help for her substance use. She was notably interviewed in 2022, showing remorse for her past actions and insisting she had changed her racist ways.

#1: Central Park Karen

One incident in 2020 at New York City’s Central Park took the internet by storm. On that day, Christian Cooper was birding when he spotted Amy Cooper with an unleashed dog in a prohibited area. When he confronted the woman (whom he’s not related to, despite their last names), the conversation took a dark turn. Cooper called the cops, dramatically claiming she was being threatened by a Black man, all while tugging her poor pup’s collar. Thankfully, Christian recorded the incident. Amy was slated all over and was even investigated by the police. Her employer, investment firm Franklin Templeton, fired her. She filed a suit and subsequent appeal against the decision. However, in 2023, the court ruled against her.




If you had to have dinner with any infamous Karen, who would you pick and why? Permit Patty? SoHo Karen? Key Fob Kelly? Or someone else? Let us know below!