In her fourth column for The Press, the chair of York-based Inclusive Equal Rights UK (IERUK), Haddy Njie, talks about the misrepresentation of wokeness.

In this piece, I want to go back to basics to explore the important meaning of wokeness. For many years, we have either participated or seen the media and those with influence misrepresent what is means to be woke.

What does the term “woke” mean to you? Most recently, in February 2024, I disturbingly read somewhere wokeness being used in the same vein as extremism and referring inclusivity as 'woke nonsense'. These references are utterly careless and gravely irresponsible, and we should no longer allow those with misunderstanding or with intent to destroy the heroic meaning of wokeness.

It is true that in the name of activism, many have zealously and dangerously acted in ways that have affected the livelihoods of people and that is wrong. It is also true that many have turned wokeness into this cool phenomenon which has reduced the positive significant impact it could have. However, being woke is not nonsense and it is certainly not an extremist ideology. We must also call it out when the term is being abused.

To be woke is to be aware of the social issues that you or loved ones may be facing. To be woke is to actively participate in solving social issues. To be woke, is to recognise that there are social issues which are impacting a group of people. Therefore, I am proud to be woke in racial inequalities and injustices. I am also woke when it relates to climate and environmental problems because I worry for my daughter and her generation. It is my plan to guide my daughter to be woke and be a climate change activist the moment she is able to speak and write.

Since this piece is about going back to basics. I encourage you to open a dictionary and research what is “wokeness”. We must not allow the media to teach us on the importance of activism.

If you are an avid watcher of Oxford Union, you may have seen the debate about wokeness where one of the debaters argued that to really solve racism, we must judge people by their character.

Admittedly, he said others with more eloquence have explained it better and I think he was referring to Martin Luther King Jr. which is true because there is no one that can speak with power, eloquence, and dignity.

But, if we listen to his entire speech or if we focus on the evidence, the data tells us that our institutions are set-up to disproportionately discriminate those from ethnic minorities. The analysis of research concludes that there is evidence of systemic racism.

While it is true that we should be ashamed to judge anyone based on what they look like or where they come from, it is imperative to revisit our practices, systems, and policies in order to solve racial injustices that many see and experience daily. I became woke on racial injustices in 2016 when I experienced the worst form of racism, and I am proud of the activism work my team has undertaken to solve the issues of racism in the city of York www.ieruk.org.uk/strategy

So, what are you woke about or in other words, what are some of societal issues that you, your loved ones or your community are going through? It could be on disability or LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, climate change, ageism, gender equality. Whatever it is, we are all directly or indirectly facing with a social issue, and it is our collective responsibility to join together to address them. These are important questions to be discussing with our next generation.

As Former President Barack Obama said, being woke “is not about calling people out on social media because that does not bring about change”.

Suggestion of the month – What are you woke about?

Language and words are powerful. Let us be mindful of how we use them.