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Culture June 21, 2017
Discussing social awareness is a good thing, right?
Photo via Instagram / @celebeditionDo you feel like you’re in the Matrix and just took the red pill? Congratulations, you’re officially woke.
So you’re probably asking, what the hell does woke even mean?
Well, we’re glad you asked.
While the word sounds a little funny said out loud, the meaning is no laughing matter.
According to dictionary.com, woke is when you’re “actively aware of systemic injustices and prejudices, especially those related to civil and human rights.”
Some examples include awareness of faulty issues in police training that have led to police brutality against minorities and the poor.
The woke definition also means keeping up with issues like homelessness and limited access to mental healthcare help.
The basic gist is that you are aware about what’s currently going on in society. You know that it’s not all about the latest fashion trend or the newly bought Kardashian butt.
According to Webster, “woke” as a slang word that is synonymous with “social awareness” was sparked by the 2008 song “Master Teacher” by Erykah Badu.
The lyrics reference a search for a “beautiful world” throughout the struggles of life. It encourages staying woke despite what you are going through.
Even though you go through struggle and strife
To keep a healthy life, I stay woke
(I stay woke)
Everybody knows a black or a white there’s creatures in every shape and size”
The Netflix hit “Dear White People,” also popularized the phrase “stay woke.” The TV series focuses on issues black Americans face in regard to systemic racism and ignorance in modern society.
The show also calls for white people to become aware of micro-aggressions manifesting in today’s culture. It emphasizes this affects the way races communicate with each other.
Individuals like the Tumblr user above feel that “being woke” became a term for the educated or rich. His poem explains the term may actually be stripping a voice from minorities. He argues it is causing those in pain to have to constantly justify and explain to others the social issues that are affecting their lives.
The rest of the poem can be seen here.
But, Tumblr isn’t the only site causing users to question the power of the word “woke.”
The hashtag #staywoke is also widely shared on social media sites like Instagram and Twitter for “woke” individuals to connect with other “non-sheeple.”
But, like any good-intentioned trending hashtag, some users believe #staywoke has surpassed its time of standing for social justice and has fallen to the dark abyss in the form of the Internet meme.
Online critics claim the term has become just another trending topic, belittling the importance of important social issues.
Even if the term may be beginning to lose its power, its meaning has not.
The fact that people are starting to “get woke” to the realities of social injustice and are starting conversations about the issues and how to change them, will always be the most important aspect.
