I realize I’ve written about his before, but it came up again over the weekend. Two people in a small group I was talking with said they didn’t know what “woke” meant — at least not the way it is usually used in today’s news.
The word “woke” has been around a long time, but only fairly recently did it become popular — and — political.
From what I’ve read, “woke” originally came fromAfrican American slang and it meant someone who is awake or aware, especially about racism and social injustice. I remember during all the racial unrest in the 1960’s it was used to encourage people to stay “woke” — to stay aware of the fight for equal rights.
Of course, social media made it popular once again in the 2010’s — it was used to describe people who were aware of things like, racism, sexism, inequality and LGBTQ rights. It was a positive word, used by people who wanted to show they cared abut fairness and justice.
But — before too long, politicians and some media started using “woke” in a negative way, saying it meant being too sensitive, trying to force certain beliefs, or being overly politically correct.
It’s worth remembering that the term originally meant being aware of unfair treatment, especially toward people because of their race, gender, or background. It was all about paying attention to how others were treated and caring about making things more fair.
Unfortunately, today, it can mean different things, depending on who says it and how they say it.
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