Too woke?
Reinventing language for a better, common future to replace distortions that polarize.
“You are too woke.” That comment, after church, prompted me to probe deeper into the use of “woke” and the way that certain words are being redefined and weaponized in current wars of communication. It takes an unusual kind of translation skill to discern a wise response.
Dictionaries define “woke” as being aware and alert to racism and other social injustice. That seems to be a good thing. Can followers of Jesus be too woke? Naming injustice often made Jesus “too woke” for the Jewish leaders of his time. I am in good company.
A short history of ‘woke’
Probing deeper, “woke,” an old word for “awake,” took on new meaning in the African American community in the early twentieth century as a call to recognize discrimination. “Stay woke,” Black leaders would say to their communities. It was co-opted and turned into a pejorative insult as part of the backlash against the increased focus on racism after the murder of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter campaigns. It became associated with critical race theory, an academic framework for analyzing systemic racism, which was labelled as Marxist, extreme and evil. In political discourse, “wokism” is now used as shorthand to attack all kinds of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including attacks on practices that were in place well before DEI became the equivalent of a swear word in populist talk.
In my church experience, “too woke” could be translated as overly sensitive or easily offended. At a deeper level, the insult is intentional reframing that diverts attention away from systemic racism. It is not something to be brushed off. It turns the tables; those who raise concerns about racism are positioned as offenders while perpetrators of racism are portrayed as victims of unfair attacks.
In Canada, learning from Indigenous peoples shows how deep racism was and is embedded in systems such as education, government policy, culture and church institutions. Systemic racism is real and very harmful. In this context, it matters how the word “woke” is used or misused. Should I wear a button that says “Woke and proud of it”? Probably not, because it plays into the polarization. But I am resolved not to be put off course by insults of being “too woke.” Next time I will stand up and challenge the use of that term, when it is being used to divert attention from important issues that we need to address.
Words as weapons
Words can quickly become weapons in the communication wars of the social media era. Journalist Carol Off draws attention to how other important words are being hijacked in her book, At a Loss for Words: Conversations in an Age of Rage. Freedom, democracy, truth and taxes, as well as woke, are words that are intentionally mistranslated in damaging ways. For each one, Off suggests reinventing language for a better, common future to replace distortions that polarize. That seems easier to suggest than to do in practice – especially over coffee at church. “Watch your language,” my mother often said. It has a whole new meaning now.
Ah, it’s the nature of language. Think of the word “gay” which has been co-opted. It once meant happy, carefree. How about “phobia” which was almost exclusively a terms used by psychologists and psychologists to describe a disorder characterized by a morbid and oft incapacitating fear. No longer. Now it is commonly used as a synonym for hate. Even the term “evangelical,” in many circles, has come to be equated with “fundamentalist.” In all of these the common denominator is a movement away from courteous and respectful dialogue toward ad hominem. If you don’t have something intelligent to add to the argument, then label your opponent and call them names.