Woke describes awareness of any discrimination. The term that best describes "woke" is its synonym aware. Examples of synonyms for woke (up)—"awakened, awoke, and stirred. Wokeism is a term used to describe a social and political movement that seeks to address and correct social injustices, inequality, and discrimination. It emphasizes recognizing and challenging systemic issues like racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression and promotes empathy, inclusivity, and awareness of diverse perspectives. The origins of wokeism can be traced back to the Civil Rights Movement, and it has gained significance in recent years. It is not an official term but rather a concept. Being woke means speaking up and doing something to help those being treated unfairly (for example, because of their skin color).

Woke appeals to traditional liberal and leftist emotions...the desire to help the oppressed and marginalized. The specific topics that imbue current-day woke include diversity, antisemitism, and immigration. The data revealed a surprising story of what some Americans care about and underlying anxieties about changing society. The words in the description of woke include discrimination, minority, racist, progressive liberal, republican, ideology, and stupid. Woke is now used as both a compliment and an insult, a signal that you are in the “know.” Since the 1930s woke has been used to refer to awareness of social and political issues affecting African Americans and has also been used for some ideas of the American Left involving social injustice, identity politics, reparations for slavery in the U.S., and white privilege.

Over time, it has become connected to matters such as race, gender, and identities perceived as marginalized. Black American singer Lead Belly used the phrases "Stay" and "woke"—"Best stay woke... keep your eyes open"—to "encourage Black Americans to be aware of racially motivated threats and dangers from white Americans.

The term "woke" spread internationally and was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2017. The terms "woke-washing" and "woke-capitalism" were used to criticize organizations that advertise their commitment to social justice for financial gain. Woke is increasingly used as a byword for social awareness. Being aware and actively attentive to important facts and issues, especially of racial and social injustice. Now, the Post-Woke Era is here. The woke wields enormous political, economic, and cultural power. There are conflicts around issues of gender, free speech, race, and culture.

These conflicts are not only waged by the right-wing press but are also found in many institutions largely staffed by liberal left-wing people. The culture wars are real; they are an extension of politics—and politics is, by its very nature, oppositional. Woke is useful in conveying its aggressive force. The transgender debate, for instance, is a battle between older gay and lesbian radicals and younger ones. Some people in the publishing industry will chat with you and express their views, but it has to be off the record. For example, these people are scared of saying the treatment of the British author J.K. Rowling was terrible and that the British writer Kate Clanchy made a mistake in responding to a Goodreads comment on X, but for detractors, behaved terribly, and that the use of sensitivity readers is crude.

They believe this, but the obscurity effect of self-censorship becomes clear, and they don't want to lose their jobs. Claiming that certain figures from the past who were racist were not, in fact, racist is an extreme view (academics who will argue that Churchill was a racist but also a great man). These academics can value both diversity and frank intellectual debate, but they live in an atmosphere in which they are in conflict. And so, they do nothing about it, because they don’t want to face backlash.

This is why saying and using 'woke' is important. It brings what is obscure into the open. There is much self-censorship going on, and people are not being honest about what they believe regarding certain sensitive issues. The word "woke" has become a complex term and has obtained the meaning of being 'politically and socially aware.' Woke means being obsessively politically correct and judgmental in the United States, and it has been weaponized against BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), the LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) community, and other marginalized groups. 'Umbrella' terms are designed to cover a broad category of groups, with BIPOC and LGBT+ being two of the most well-known and frequently used. Umbrella terms have power, but they also have limitations.

To include more people under one broad categorization has not worked. People vehemently and repeat that they are offended by its use. BIPOC is an attempt to center the violence, systemic racism, and cultural erasure against Black and Indigenous people and how it is founded on the enslavement of Black people and the genocide of Indigenous people. Other more inclusive umbrella options, such as ALAANA (which stands for African, Latinx, Arab, Asian, or Native American), have also been proposed. So, the conversation about umbrella terms extends beyond racial and ethnic identities and has also taken place in the LGBTQ+ community around gender and sexuality, which allows flexibility and can be more extensive. Language conveys values; consciously and intentionally, the dignity of people should be affirmed.

The woke organization is defined as an organization focused on culture and creating an environment where everyone is comfortable sharing their experiences and is equipped to talk about race equity and inequities. The primary goal is inclusion and internal change in behaviors, policies, and practices. In the film industry, 'wokeness' refers to a conscious attempt by storytellers to confront and bring attention to social and political issues. The rising need for authenticity and representation in the film industry sparked the woke trend.

The European woke madness: European centrists are floundering in the face of center-right and populist-right-wing parties. The progressive moment in global politics is over. Political figures on the right are gaining power across the West by raising legitimate complaints about leftist postmodernist madness. A far-left agenda demonstrates an obsession with diversity, equity, and inclusion, and canceling conservative classical opinions. The objective was to make the majority feel ashamed of itself. The Left accused conservatives of waging a 'culture war' to overturn an established way of doing things.

The tide started to turn in many parts of the world. Australians resoundingly rejected a referendum that would have added racial identity to the nation's constitution. In March 2024, Ireland decisively rejected a proposal to change its constitution to remove the old-fashioned language (which activists claimed was 'sexist') and to replace the term "marriage" with 'durable relationship.' Zuckerberg's Meta has joined Elon Musk's X in renouncing censorship and left-wing fact-checkers. More woke madness: Immigration and woke ideology has put English identity at risk.

Woke University tells students to stop saying "husband" and "wife" because it isn't inclusive enough. The EU has advised against using common words containing "man," like "man-made," "tradesman," "chairman," "spokesman," etc., to encompass "people of all genders." It suggests these words are not inclusive and recommends alternatives such as "humanity" for "mankind," "labor hours" for "man-hours," and "the average person" for "man," etc. This woke nonsense now feels completely outdated. Furthermore, British pupils are set to have problematic words like "immigration" and "homosexuality" removed from their papers. Exam boards are labeling a series of words, including "immigration," "slave," "gypsy," and "native Indian," as problematic. Elsewhere, "gypsies" must be called Roma and Sinti, while "Jews" has been cast aside in favor of "Jewish people." It is an outrageous abuse of the power that exam boards have over young people. Public examinations are being weaponized to force children to conform to the tyranny of woke ideology.

Systemic book banning in Canada is more effective than ever. Libraries are being purged in the name of protecting kids. A principal of one school told a group of parents that she wished she could get rid of old books that are too Eurocentric, too male, and too heteronormative. According to PEN America, thousands of book removals occurred in 2023 in 42 states, both Democratic and Republican. Much of this book banning appears to be fueled by outright bigotry. Book banners continue to target stories by and about people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals.

Thirty percent of banned books are about race, racism, or feature characters of color. The reason why book banners attack works of historical fiction, novels of American racial trauma, and countless other texts at the intersection of race and history is that the banners are fighting for control of our collective past and are fighting for their vision of the future. Did we lose the arguments to explain why books matter and why the banning and destruction of literature are so odious and socially corrosive?

But childhood matters. Today, social media and digital technology occupy an increasingly central role in children's lives, and it seems strange to fret about the power of books. Better protect children from media. So, the public and shareholders are fed up with corporations embracing progressive causes. Donald Trump marked an important turning point and the crack-up of the old consensus, and leftist views about transgenderism and race are openly challenged and even mocked.

A priority of Trump's administration was to eradicate critical race theory. It was the woke ideology, with its often unreasonable rhetoric, that paved the way for the more reactionary right. Just look at the anti-DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) actions taken by Trump immediately after his re-election. It's suddenly socially acceptable for even Corporate America to be against DEI, to oppose wokeness, and to highlight the excesses. We must realize that with U.S. President Donald Trump's attempt to exploit his second term to control the world, we are in an unprecedented situation, and it is everyone's responsibility to oppose it by affirming progressive values.

Woke... this little word that describes awareness of any discrimination was already in crisis, even before Donald Trump. Other reactionary governments and Big Tech blocked initiatives related to the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion. For the liberal Left, bonds and obligations can and must be universal. And wokeism gets it wrong, claiming that universalism is a European lie, promoting actions and values that purport to be universalistic when they are only in the interests of white males. People today are more sensitive toward injustice, discrimination, and prejudice.

Wokeism is employed by younger strata of society, by those who are culturally aware of social issues, mainly due to available technologies that allow them to read about today's vital concerns. They are also the most active social media users, where they exchange ideas against injustice, intolerance, and discrimination. In Gen Z slang, 'woke' is gaining popularity and is defined as 'aware' and attentive to important facts and issues. ''Gassing"—politically correct, bias-free—means supporting someone.

The anti-woke rant has become popular because almost everyone rejects its principles if expressed in a violent, crude way. The progressive media (The Guardian, The New York Times) have been very responsible for the woke outrage. The woke ideology has already lost its innocence and has become, in the hands of the right, the ideal insult with which to discredit any fight against racism, injustice, and oppression. The essay Left Is Not Woke by Susan Neiman (director of the Einstein Forum in Potsdam) suggests that to understand the post-woke world, we must give up what we take for granted.

The woke movement is profoundly undermined internally by very reactionary ideas: the rejection of universalism, the denial of a principled distinction between power and justice, and the belief that any attempt at progress is a disguised form of submission. The obscuration of important sociopolitical and material crises by a pathological obsession with language and offense-taking... woke arguments seem anachronistic and outdated. Is wokeness going away?

Being aware of and fighting against unfairness is an important part of making our world a better place for everyone and employing better strategies to fight for a better future. Wokeism is one of the more prominent movements today.