Are You Woke(n)?

[mercalia]

I keep on coming across this term, not sure what it means but seems derogatory or with-it depending on your point of view. It dont seem very grammatical to claim to be woke(n) for one? Does it mean you are wiccan?

eg re the new BBC director general -

It does not matter how many publicly funded bodies are bullied into acceding each and every demand from one or other victim group, it is still nowhere close to persuading the average voter — or licence fee payer — to clamber aboard the woke bandwagon........Under Lord Hall’s administration, a moronic wokeness began to infest each and every part of the BBC’s output.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2020/01/a-last-chance-to-save-the-bbc/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WEEK%20%2020200125%20%20AL&utm_content=WEEK%20%2020200125%20%20AL%20CID_8abaec0250737d1d5a194276534fa5a3&utm_source=CampaignMonitor_Production&utm_term=The%20BBC%20must%20learn%20the%20lessons%20of%20Labours%20defeat

[Cyril Haearn]

Awareness, enlightenment, understanding, wisdom?
Is it a new word/use/meaning? Have a look in your Thesaurus
Cannae answer the question yet

[mattheus]

I'll settle for "hep" - might achieve it one day.

[RickH]

I'd heard the term "woke" a couple of times but hadn't investigated its contemporary meaning before. According to dictionary.com

Woke means being conscious of racial discrimination in society and other forms of oppression and injustice...

[Mick F]

No idea what it means, and the link at the OP won't work unless I subscribe ............. which I won't.

[Pastychomper]

I thought "woke" was used more as an (adj) than a (n).

Dictionary.com's definition was probably the original meaning, but I've mostly seen it being used in the more derogatory sense which can be summed up as:

Conforming to or agreeing with the beliefs of any of several groups of activists.

If the activists in question oppose oppression and injustice, then both senses should mean the same thing.

A phrase I've seen elsewhere is "Get woke - go broke", which I'm told refers to businesses that try to show how woke they are by pandering to one group but end up alienating most of their customers - which shows they are not really "woke" (in the first sense) at all. I have come across a few examples of organisations behaving this way, but on closer inspection most of them appeared to be using the "woke" flag to cover up some internal politricks.

[mercalia]

No idea what it means, and the link at the OP won't work unless I subscribe ............. which I won't.

you sure. I dont seem to have to register or subscribe just accept cookies

[Vorpal]

Wikipedia has the answer....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woke

[reohn2]

Wikipedia has the answer....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woke

Just to take that meaning and use it.
Can a white person(in a predominately white society)truly know the true meaning of being 'woke' in the same way as a person of colour,and similarly so the same as a woman's 'woken' state in a Male dominated society?

[Mick F]

No idea what it means, and the link at the OP won't work unless I subscribe ............. which I won't.

you sure. I dont seem to have to register or subscribe just accept cookies

[mercalia]

No idea what it means, and the link at the OP won't work unless I subscribe ............. which I won't.

you sure. I dont seem to have to register or subscribe just accept cookies

Screen Shot 2020-01-24 at 16.14.42.png

thats very strange

click to enlarge

They must have it in for you since you dont have a tv license?

[reohn2]

I'm havingnthe same problem as MickF,I can't read the article and I do have a TV licence

[Vorpal]

Wikipedia has the answer....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woke

Just to take that meaning and use it.
Can a white person(in a predominately white society)truly know the true meaning of being 'woke' in the same way as a person of colour,and similarly so the same as a woman's 'woken' state in a Male dominated society?

Yes and no... The way my non-white friends use it is to refer (mostly) to white folks who understand the issues of racism, who listen and point out when other white folks do racist crap. So, a middle aged white guy, who talking about movies, might say to another white guy, "I don't like that movie because the book had some really good, strong POC characters, but the movie made them all minor characters, except the sidekick who got turned into magic negro". POC might say he is 'woke'. It's also not just understanding, but working for justice in a unjust system. Talking about representation in movies & literature, how the education systems disadvantages some youth, showing up for protests (or maybe giving money to organisations that work for justice, if someone isn't brave/extrovert enough for protest)

I do think that is possible for white folks to understand woke, even if they never feel racism in their bones the way POC do. Men who are feminists, or support the feminists in their lives can also be said to be woke. But people telling their friends to 'stay woke' is also important. They can't stop listening to what POC say just because they're 'woke'.

Unfortunately, there also an anti-woke movement. Folks who say that woke=snowflake and the backlash feeds the hostility towards feminism and anti-racism. While I don't think we should trivialise it, I also don't think that mainstream media should give it a platfom.

[RickH]

I'm havingnthe same problem as MickF,I can't read the article and I do have a TV licence

Me too on both counts.

[reohn2]

Wikipedia has the answer....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woke

Just to take that meaning and use it.
Can a white person(in a predominately white society)truly know the true meaning of being 'woke' in the same way as a person of colour,and similarly so the same as a woman's 'woken' state in a Male dominated society?

Yes and no... The way my non-white friends use it is to refer (mostly) to white folks who understand the issues of racism, who listen and point out when other white folks do racist crap. So, a middle aged white guy, who talking about movies, might say to another white guy, "I don't like that movie because the book had some really good, strong POC characters, but the movie made them all minor characters, except the sidekick who got turned into magic negro". POC might say he is 'woke'. It's also not just understanding, but working for justice in a unjust system. Talking about representation in movies & literature, how the education systems disadvantages some youth, showing up for protests (or maybe giving money to organisations that work for justice, if someone isn't brave/extrovert enough for protest)

I do think that is possible for white folks to understand woke, even if they never feel racism in their bones the way POC do. Men who are feminists, or support the feminists in their lives can also be said to be woke. But people telling their friends to 'stay woke' is also important. They can't stop listening to what POC say just because they're 'woke'.

Unfortunately, there also an anti-woke movement. Folks who say that woke=snowflake and the backlash feeds the hostility towards feminism and anti-racism. While I don't think we should trivialise it, I also don't think that mainstream media should give it a platfom.

I can't argue with any of that,other than too say second hand experience can naver be felt in the same way as first hand.