Gender and Social Change

Being “Woke” Online and its Implications

The birth of the digital world in the 21st century has created dozens of ways for us to gather news and be engaged with social media and news outlets that allow us to be constantly up to date with the current social news of movements and events happening in real time. This constant connection to a never ending stream of information has led to a surge in social activism as movements are able to gain the traction they need to share their goals and message. The ease in which movements can share information and reach such a wide audience means that countless individuals can learn about these causes and go to help these movements. These individuals that are aware of these movements and play an active part in advocating for these groups could be described as being "woke" in a positive way as defined by Urban Dictonary as, "to be "woke" is to come into the realization of systematic social and political injustice that is still prevalent in today's society. And once this enlightenment is reached, this person should show this through their actions, i.e. protesting, political involvement, community engagement, etc" [1]. This positive form of being "woke" however, is a double-sided coin with the slang also having its negative connotations on the internet with fake "woke" individuals losing sight of their original goals as the movement's message is shifted and misinterpreted, or even used by some as a means to profit and gain popularity. Nowadays, the term woke has become a negative term used to demean activists and those who wish to take part in these movements. As defined by Urban Dictonary, being woke is "the act of being very pretentious about how much you care about a social issue," [2] or as described by another user, "Deluded or fake awareness." [3]. This act of fake activism has caused a great deal of harm to movements as these "woke" individuals bring a negative reputation to the movement.

A cartoon depicting two individuals discussing the best way to fight climate change with one individual suggesting to make a petition to sign. The cartoon is underlining the useless parts of movements that appear with fake "woke" individuals who propose a means for change that doesn't further the movement. All this gesture accomplishes is giving the individual a sense of success when this gesture has done nothing for the movement.

Being labeled as woke online today on most accounts is used in the negative form to harrass activists and to denounce movements as being pretentious and not needed in today's society. This label has resulted in individuals feeling as though they are unable to fully embrace these movements without having the fear of them being labeled as being a "performative activist" and being responsible for learning about all these movements to avoid being labeled as woke is a tall order to live up to. The negative form of being woke that has become such a core aspect of activism can be broken down into three specific signs of false wokeness in the world today and how this fake wokeness has negatively impacted movements.

The first sign of negative wokeness can be seen when an individual's activism only extends as far as their social media. As stated before, the internet has been a positive force in providing individuals means to communicate and spread information to one another. One such form that has taken off for activism is the use of hashtags such as #metoo that originated from the feminist movement to raise awareness of women that were abused or the #blacklivesmatter movement that was dedicated to raising awareness about police brutality and to fight for justice. These hashtags have been a great way to gain traction for movements and foster relationships in communities as individuals reach out to and relate to one another. This form of communication however has been abused by fake woke individuals who want an easy way of gaining attention by using these hashtags to gain popularity without understanding the movement. This lack of interest makes activists that use these hashtags to advocate appear poorly as the goals of the movement are misconstrude by these fake woke individuals and appear as hypocrites for only advocating online as well without backing their voices up with actions. 

Another sign of fake wokeness can be seen through individuals that are willfully ignorant about opposing information who refuse to listen to any opposing ideas. Those who are fake woke will shutdown any form of opposition that opposes their ideals. This refusal to listen to others is harmful to the movement as without criticism, a movement cannot grow and refine their goals into a movement that will benefit the very thing they advocate for. This growth can be seen in the feminist movement as it has moved overtime from only empowering women to encompassing and addressing themes of steryotyping, racism, the LGBTQA+ community, and many other aspects that wouldn't have been considered without the movement being open to change. 

The final example of fake wokefulness that is seen online is an unwillingness to compromise. This fake wokeness can be seen when an individual becomes so wrapped up in their own popularity and influence that they refuse to accept any other ideas, stating that the only acceptable means of thinking being their own. To advance these movements, individuals must be self-aware enough to be able to listen to and accept other individual's ideas to form a movement that represents the community its fighting for. 

A cartoon of a woman studying what she is protesting for while at the protest. This cartoon is commenting on the "woke" trend of hopping into all types of activism without knowing anything about the movement that is being supported.  

References:

[1] Euro-Refugee. “Woke.” Urban Dictionary, 11 Feb. 2018, https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=woke.

[2] Vensamos. “Woke.” Urban Dictionary, 16 May. 2018, https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=woke.

[3] Gmoochie. “Woke.” Urban Dictionary, 15 Oct. 2019, https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=woke.

[4] What Went Wrong Or Right With...?. “What Went Wrong with... the Word ‘Woke’?” WHAT WENT WRONG WITH...?, 5 Dec. 2021, https://whatwentwrongwith.com/2021/10/25/what-went-wrong-with-the-word-woke/.