Domino's free pizza offering to 'nice, law-abiding Karens' receives backlash

Domino's free pizza offering in New Zealand and Australia has been met with mixed reactions after the launch of a promotional offer that promised to give all “nice, law-abiding Karens” a free pizza.

Earlier this week, Domino's Australia and New Zealand announced on social media that they were giving away free pizza to all “Karens” who've been receiving backlash on social media.

“Karen” is a term used for girls or women who are perceived to be entitled, racist and anti-black.

The giveaway asked anyone who is named Karen to fill in a form that tells the pizza chain in 250 words why they are one of the “nice ones” who deserve to get a free pizza.

“Karen the nurse, Karen the teacher, Karen the mum, Karen the neighbour, Karen the mask wearer — we’re all in this together, but a vocal minority who believe rules and laws don’t apply to them have given the name 'Karen' a bad rap this year. At Domino’s, we know there’s plenty of Australians named Karen that aren’t, well, 'Karens'," said the pizza chain.

According to the BBC, Domino's chief marketing officer in the region, Allan Collins, said the aim behind the giveaway was “all about bringing people together”.

“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 received criticism from social media users, with many saying the pizza chain was rewarding “privileged racists” while ignoring more important issues.

After the backlash, Domino's New Zealand dropped the offer and issued an apology on its Facebook page.

“In New Zealand, because it lacked this important context, people interpreted this in a different way than we intended. We appreciate how this has happened and have listened — we’ve removed this post. Our intention was one of inclusivity only. Our pizza brings people together and we only had this at the heart of the giveaway.”

However, Domino's Australia is still running its promotion.

Here is a snapshot of what many had to say about the promotion.