Debunking Being Too Woke
- Jun 1
- 2 min read
You are never too woke!
By Clara Ding
You know that friend who’s too woke? The ‘blue-haired liberal’ and the imposition of their absurd, ‘woke’ opinions. You feel like you need to hold your tongue around them, dampen your jokes, avoid political topics, and set yourself apart from this overly sensitive generation. Well, unfortunately, this term, ‘woke,’ encompasses my very being. To paraphrase, I am the friend that’s too woke, and this is your call to vote woke, stay woke, and be woke.
The majority of the individuals who partake in the ‘bashing of woke culture’ do not even understand where the term ‘woke’ derives from. ‘Woke’ originates from AAVE (African American Vernacular English), first used by Huddie Ledbetter in his 1938 protest song, Scottsboro Boys, articulating the prevalence of systemic racism in society at the time (especially in legal practices/cases where racism and accusations rooted in racism were especially prevalent). It describes the concept of ‘waking up’ to the intense stratification of society; being aware of the oppression and ostracisation marginalised groups experience, furthermore defined by common social constructs such as gender, class, and politics. It also encompasses outwardly expressing dissatisfaction with existing hierarchies, economic dogma, and the regime of totalitarian/authoritarian dictatorship. ‘Woke’ had a particular uprise during the #blacklivesmatter movement during the 2010s, but has now become diluted, mocked, and used as an insult; it eventually lost its meaning through the two decades of its sudden popularity.
Despite the firm origin of the term woke, it is interpreted and applied differently across communities, especially due to its movement into mainstream political discourse. On one hand, woke refers to a commitment to social justice and equity. On the other hand, woke refers to high salience items aligned with progressive ideas that are often polarising to right-wing, more conservative ideologies… So how can being ‘too woke’ be wholly debunked?
Even the idea of being ‘too woke’ is inherently flawed because awareness of systemic discrimination and commitment to social justice are not finite, nor are they excessive qualities. Streamlining this, being aware of active discrimination in society, for example, casual racism in contemporary Australian society, and sensitising this information and experience, is not something that can be overdone. It is not extreme. An individual opinion (that may be hypersensitive or stem from an individual’s personal experience with discrimination) that you disagree with does not make it automatically woke. To conclude, woke takes do not coincide with extreme takes.
Ultimately, it is utterly impossible to be ‘too woke’. People can confuse blatant hypersensitivity with woke, express indifference towards real, emerging issues in our status quo, and label you with the stereotypical character of a ‘colourful left-winger’. But this should never compromise your activity and awareness in crafting a more just society. Protect marginalised groups in society, stay enraged until there’s change, and ultimately, stay woke!
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so true :) awesome article!!