“What does woke mean?”

[Yakuda]

Woke just means becoming aware that minorities are not getting even treatment from American institutions including schools, work, police, and others. Since the right has no defense against that, they redefine it as needed.

The three largest cities in America have black mayors one a black female. NY has a black police chief and Chicago recently had a black chief. Multiple departments either have or recently had black chiefs. This tired old excuse about a "systemically" racist country makes you people look more stupid than usual.

 

[BartenderElite]

For starters it's not just conservatives and a dictionary definition and how a word is used in the real world can be two very different things. On paper sure, it's pretty hard to be against 'woke' if it simply means being aware of injustice. Most people would say they are woke if that's all it was. Where the resistance and push back comes from are actions and policies done in the name of wokeness that people don't agree with. Simply labeling something as 'woke' doesn't give it a pass or mean it should be free of scrutiny.

I'll offer a couple of examples but there are many many more. Take Affirmative Action. Supporting AA would be woke right? Yet in California, a heavily Democratic state where whites are not a majority, in 2020 we voted again against AA. Does that make much of the state non-woke? Take SAT, LSAT and other standardized tests that some think are racist or not woke. Can one be woke and still support those tests? Take reparations. Clearly not all liberals supports reparations. Can you call yourself woke and not support them (or think there should be any cap on the dollar amount given)? Take crime. I'll speak to San Francisco but it's not unique here. Last year we recalled our progressive DA whose whole M.O. was we need less people in jail etc. San Francisco is generally considered a pretty progressive City, but can it consider itself woke because people here are worried about crime and wanted someone who will pay more attention to it?

The frontrunners for the GOP nomination have clearly come out AGAINST "woke." And with DeSantis, we know it's much more than something like opposition to AA - which is a traditional conservative stance.

I think the right is making a huge mistake. They're trying to define "woke" to mean what they want it to mean - but it just means awareness about social issues, and a commitment to improving things for groups that are normally the subject of discrimination. There are real debates to be had about supporting something like AA - but the leaders of the conservative movement have taken it much further than that.

And it's going to be difficult to backtrack from that. They're on the wrong side of history w/ this one.

 

[cawacko]

The frontrunners for the GOP nomination have clearly come out AGAINST "woke." And with DeSantis, we know it's much more than something like opposition to AA - which is a traditional conservative stance.

I think the right is making a huge mistake. They're trying to define "woke" to mean what they want it to mean - but it just means awareness about social issues, and a commitment to improving things for groups that are normally the subject of discrimination. There are real debates to be had about supporting something like AA - but the leaders of the conservative movement have taken it much further than that.

And it's going to be difficult to backtrack from that. They're on the wrong side of history w/ this one.

Awareness can be a rather abstract thing. So people can walk around proclaiming themselves to be aware, aka woke, but what does that actually require of them? AA, reparations, crime, standardized tests etc. etc. these are all things some proclaim to be a result of, or in need of, because of systemic racism. So if you're 'aware' of historical injustice can you also be against any of those positions? Are you on the wrong side of history if you don't support all of those?

 

[Noking]

And conservatives have staked out a position against this.

Consevative us this word for a substitute for the N-word.

 

[cawacko]

The frontrunners for the GOP nomination have clearly come out AGAINST "woke." And with DeSantis, we know it's much more than something like opposition to AA - which is a traditional conservative stance.

I think the right is making a huge mistake. They're trying to define "woke" to mean what they want it to mean - but it just means awareness about social issues, and a commitment to improving things for groups that are normally the subject of discrimination. There are real debates to be had about supporting something like AA - but the leaders of the conservative movement have taken it much further than that.

And it's going to be difficult to backtrack from that. They're on the wrong side of history w/ this one.

I'll throw this out as well. In a certain political sense I think 'woke' is simply synonymous with progressive. Therefore those on the left want to declare themselves woke aka politically progressive and those on the right anti-woke aka not politically progressive.

I'll share a personal and antidotal story. I have a few friends that are on the political left but we all enough respect for each other that we're able to have honest discussions (it's actually quite enjoyable). I acknowledge my dislike of Trump and issues I have with Republicans and they do the same for the left (and these people are all from Oakland fwiw). Each of them have said they are sick of the excesses of wokeness. To them it empowers the idiots like Trump and DeSantis. You, or anyone else, are of course free to disagree with these friends of mine and think there is no such thing as an excess of wokeness. But being a political junkie and living in a very liberal area I know they aren't alone in those thoughts.

 

[archives]

Woke means if you hear an animal oink, it may not be a pig and if you see someone with a vagina it may not be a woman. It means you can walk around screaming, "Fuck America" but you can't sing the national anthem. There's plenty more.

None of that is a definition, in fact, it proves my point, that woke, like deep state, and others echoed on the right, is just another amorphous cliche that can be applied and pedaled just about anywhere without having to understand the term

Thanks

 

[NiftyNiblick]

Regardless of what it was meant to mean, it now means "politically correct,"
just as "gay" now means homosexual,
and more offensively, "they" now means he/she/it.

 

[archives]

For starters it's not just conservatives and a dictionary definition and how a word is used in the real world can be two very different things. On paper sure, it's pretty hard to be against 'woke' if it simply means being aware of injustice. Most people would say they are woke if that's all it was. Where the resistance and push back comes from are actions and policies done in the name of wokeness that people don't agree with. Simply labeling something as 'woke' doesn't give it a pass or mean it should be free of scrutiny.

I'll offer a couple of examples but there are many many more. Take Affirmative Action. Supporting AA would be woke right? Yet in California, a heavily Democratic state where whites are not a majority, in 2020 we voted again against AA. Does that make much of the state non-woke? Take SAT, LSAT and other standardized tests that some think are racist or not woke. Can one be woke and still support those tests? Take reparations. Clearly not all liberals supports reparations. Can you call yourself woke and not support them (or think there should be any cap on the dollar amount given)? Take crime. I'll speak to San Francisco but it's not unique here. Last year we recalled our progressive DA whose whole M.O. was we need less people in jail etc. San Francisco is generally considered a pretty progressive City, but can it consider itself woke because people here are worried about crime and wanted someone who will pay more attention to it?

Sounding a lot like Mary Ann Conway explaining “alternative facts,” just joking

Most on the right don’t understand what the word even implies, their use of it in the real world has no real application, as I said, it can be applied anywhere regardless of its relationship to actual events

And that is exactly what they are doing, “labeling something as woke” so it won’t be scrutinized, rather simply rejected

 

[Lionfish]

 

[archives]

Nailed

]

Didn’t I specifically noted “your dedication,” not some social media definition, but what you have to offer

And why should anyone be surprised, it is “copy and paste,” not really capable of much beyond copy and pasting

 

[Lionfish]

Didn’t I specifically noted “your dedication,” not some social media definition, but what you have to offer

And why should anyone be surprised, it is “copy and paste,” not really capable of much beyond copy and pasting

Poor anchovies,

 

[archives]

Awareness can be a rather abstract thing. So people can walk around proclaiming themselves to be aware, aka woke, but what does that actually require of them? AA, reparations, crime, standardized tests etc. etc. these are all things some proclaim to be a result of, or in need of, because of systemic racism. So if you're 'aware' of historical injustice can you also be against any of those positions? Are you on the wrong side of history if you don't support all of those?

No one walks around saying they are woke, it is the pimping of the word woke by many right wing politicians and demagogues to rally conservatives to their campaigns

 

[archives]

Poor anchovies,

And then he again proves my point, got nothing to offer but stupid copy and paste idiocy, thanks

 

[Lionfish]

 

[cawacko]

No one walks around saying they are woke, it is the pimping of the word woke by many right wing politicians and demagogues to rally conservatives to their campaigns

For years people would end statements with #staywoke or #staywokefam. Totally random example but my Pastor used to regularly preach that we would be a woke church. So yes, people would often tell each other to be woke. The push back started when the excesses of wokeness started to show up.

A number of people on this board admitted they had never heard the term woke prior to 2020 or 2021 even though it had been used for years. Respectfully, you yourself said you didn't know who Ibram X Kendi or Robin DiAngelo were (only half joking when I say you can get your progressive card pulled for admitting that). So people here, who tend to be older and white, aren't really on the forefront of the use of the term.

 

[Jarod]

What’s woke about it?

 

[BartenderElite]

I'll throw this out as well. In a certain political sense I think 'woke' is simply synonymous with progressive. Therefore those on the left want to declare themselves woke aka politically progressive and those on the right anti-woke aka not politically progressive.

I'll share a personal and antidotal story. I have a few friends that are on the political left but we all enough respect for each other that we're able to have honest discussions (it's actually quite enjoyable). I acknowledge my dislike of Trump and issues I have with Republicans and they do the same for the left (and these people are all from Oakland fwiw). Each of them have said they are sick of the excesses of wokeness. To them it empowers the idiots like Trump and DeSantis. You, or anyone else, are of course free to disagree with these friends of mine and think there is no such thing as an excess of wokeness. But being a political junkie and living in a very liberal area I know they aren't alone in those thoughts.

To answer your previous post: "awareness" can mean whatever anyone thinks it should mean. But to specifically come out & say that woke (awareness) should be opposed is kind of hilarious, imo. It's saying "don't be aware," any way you slice it.

As to the above, I don't disagree w/ your friends. "Woke" has been effectively hijacked by the right, and it almost feels silly to use the term now. Also, there is without a doubt an element of the left that has taken it all way too far, like PC & cancel culture. It's the whole "woke police" thing.

I think there can be common ground on this between the right and left - but it's probably not possible, because of the extremes on both sides. The right wants to make "woke" a version of PC gone wild, and the left wants to make it some strict code that everyone has to agree with. There are stories and examples on both sides that make me cringe.

 

[cawacko]

To answer your previous post: "awareness" can mean whatever anyone thinks it should mean. But to specifically come out & say that woke (awareness) should be opposed is kind of hilarious, imo. It's saying "don't be aware," any way you slice it.

As to the above, I don't disagree w/ your friends. "Woke" has been effectively hijacked by the right, and it almost feels silly to use the term now. Also, there is without a doubt an element of the left that has taken it all way too far, like PC & cancel culture. It's the whole "woke police" thing.

I think there can be common ground on this between the right and left - but it's probably not possible, because of the extremes on both sides. The right wants to make "woke" a version of PC gone wild, and the left wants to make it some strict code that everyone has to agree with. There are stories and examples on both sides that make me cringe.

The opposition to wokeness comes from how it is viewed/used in practice, not as a more abstract being against awareness. We could get into the weeds on things like DEI and ESG. On the surface it's hard to be against the stated definition of DEI. But how DEI is implemented and the bureaucracy it has become is not the same as the dictionary definition. That's where the pushback comes. That's what many 'anti-woke' people are referring too.

Yes, there are some people who call every single thing woke. They take it too extremes and sometimes their voices get amplified. But on the pendulum we've seen more and more excesses which is why there is pushback from some on the left.

 

[Yakuda]

None of that is a definition, in fact, it proves my point, that woke, like deep state, and others echoed on the right, is just another amorphous cliche that can be applied and pedaled just about anywhere without having to understand the term

Thanks

Ok, I was trying to be nice. Woke means a demented state of mind that results in the sufferer believing things that have no basis in reality. In other words you're nuts.