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How did “WOKE” get to be an insult?
As I rework my online Canvas classroom in preparation for Spring 2025, I recall seeing a Latino restaurant owner being interviewed on CNN. He said he voted for Trump because the alternative was too “woke.”
I had been wondering lately about that word and its connection to adding my preferred pronouns after my name on Zoom, part of the online class activities. I asked Claude AI, “How did the term “woke” get to be an insult?” Here’s what Claude responded in that shockingly quick way s/he has of answering questions:
The term “woke” has had an interesting evolution in its usage and meaning over time. Here’s a brief overview:
Originally, the term “woke” emerged in African American communities and referred to being aware of and attentive to issues of racial and social justice. It conveyed a sense of being “awake” to systemic injustices and inequalities that many in society remained oblivious to.
In the 2010s, the term gained more mainstream popularity, particularly among progressives and social justice advocates. It became associated with being actively conscious of and speaking out against various forms of discrimination and oppression.
(As a progressive English professor, around that time I began to note my preferred pronouns on my Syllabus and in my Zoom name. As an author, I was…
