What is “Wokeism”
Before we begin, I would like to point to the YouTube channel Then and Now as the primary source of interest in this topic, specifically the video titled “Wokeism”.
If you have been paying attention to anything remotely political, I'm sure that you have encountered the term “Woke”, but what does it really mean? well, Ill try and explain the ideology of contemporary “Wokeism”, the themes that come with the ideas and the beliefs that are commonly associated with the phrase. Firstly, we need to explore the history of the phrase so that's were we will begin.
The Lineage
The idea of “Wokeism” being a modern, or relatively new term is the common perception, the origin of the word in a sociological or political context, suggests otherwise. The words meaning has been re-framed by modern reactionaries and applied to contemporary events, although loosely relates to its original context of staying alert to injustice. The word and more potently the idea behind being woke or awake arose in the early twentieth century, as an exploration of self consciousness and identity, this was particularly adopted by African American nationalist and the colonised. With Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican activist, stating “wake up Ethiopia, wake up Africa”. Advocating for the independence of colonised African states and stating that American descendants of slaves could only achieve political consciousness through separation.
The term was adopted on a wider scale in 2014 after Michael Browns death at the hands of a police officer, used by many Black Lives Matter protestors, as a term to once again remind people to stay aware of social injustice. In short the term was (and is) used to shed light on political and social injustice, especially racial injustice.
More Recent Use
Unfortunately, the positive intentions of the word is no more, in more recent time the phrase as been adopted by the Right in a more cynical fashion. The “Woke mob” or the “Wokearty” were a divisive power of negative silencing and whom wanted absolute demolition of their ideological opposition. Which then became intertwined with the idea of cancel culture and political correctness, with the English Oxford dictionary in 1997 defining Political correctness as; “Conformity to a body of liberal or radical opinion on social matters, characterised by the advocacy of approved views and the rejection of language and behaviour considered discriminatory or offensive”, which subsequently became the common understanding of the term especially among the Right. Often with the discussion over this important piece of “Wokeism” being centred around the war over words.
This started with many early Feminist movements advocating for the neutralisation of words such as “Chairman” and “Spokesman” to reference a more timely example. Although, this phenomenon of a war for a one true political correctness or the right to define what is true speech is not new, for example what was politically correct in Tsarist Russia, was not the same as under the Bolsheviks and what was the political truth in Maoist china, is not the truth under the reign of Xi Jinping. So what has made “Wokeism” such a point of contention in recent time?
The Media
Before the time of the printing press, the publics ideas, worries and concerns where all but limited to the King or Queens court, but after such events and through the modern mediums of spreading information we are all privy to political, philosophical and ideological opinion stretching the political spectrum. The rapid broadening of availability to output opinion, alongside the affects of globalisation such as multi culturalism has arguably also deepened the fear of the public as a result of the exposure to such great and rapid change.
The democratisation of information through the internet has brought this new wave of political correctness or “Wokeism” as information of injustice is spread rapidly and in quantities never seen before, but this is not where the problem arises. Humans are social beings, with a common need to be in the loop or accepted, to gain this acceptance we must play the social game, this applies to justice and morality as well as anything and it seems the political and social monopoly is the “woke” radically leftist ideologies of today.
The Divide
The problem with this dogmatism and monopoly over the public morality is the ensuing divide, what is commonly referred to now as cancel culture. This is where someone is deemed immoral, or discriminatory due to an idea or opinion, and the result of this perceived disagreeance with “Woke” principles results in ridicule and social exclusion. Ripping the social land scape in two, dividing people on a personal level resulting in a us versus them mentality.
Hans Georg Moeller, Philosopher and lecturer at the University of Macau suggests that “Wokeism” acts as a Civil Religion with a shared moral, spiritual and ideological vision of activism, as an approach to politics and societal issues. With the expressions of “Woke” being a kind of ritual to the the religion, cementing the individual in a positive social and moral light, which only adds to the divide when people wrong the “Woke” ideology.
The summary
The idea of the “Woke” ideology is aptly summed up by the American sociologist Clay Shirky as he states; “The more ideas there are in circulation, the more ideas there are for any individual to disagree with. More media always means more arguing” with the result being simple but inevitable, tapping into the publics fear, and making a public argument will always result in conflict.
To conclude, I feel this final quote reveals an integral insight consider in the debate over “Wokeism”
“The risk of rejection, the possibility of causing offence, is the price of admission to be able to broadcast your own opinions to a stage of millions, to a broadened lively public sphere”
