We have heard so much in the last year or so about how “being woke” is detrimental to the nation, as it is being used to divide people. You hear that kind of rhetoric from those who really don’t want to address the ills of the nation unless it is from their point of view. You hear from many conservatives how being “woke” turning the races against each other, trying to make one “guilty” for the sins of others in another time. It is a politically charged word that is used often in right wing media and by conservative leaders to label them as victims. Sounds like someone else you know. But what does the word “woke” mean? According to Merriam-Webster, the word means: “as aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues”. Notice the words “facts” and “issues?” The dictionary giant also says that the word is “a slang word that originated” in African American English and gained more widespread use beginning in 2014 as part of the Black Lives Matter movement. Years later, it was also being applied by some as a general pejorative for anyone who is or appears to be left leaning politically. Notice also that woke people are never right-leaning political people. Now that we are woke, what’s the thing that we need to do? Stay Woke! When Michael Brown was killed by police in Ferguson, MO in 2014, it woke up millions of Black Americans to unarmed Black men were being killed at the hands by police officers and nothing was done. That’s what the Black Lives Movement was about. But now when right wing media mentions the movement, it portrays Black protesters as antagonistic, while other like Kyle Rittenhouse as heroes. That was the call to being woke and as the fight/struggle continue, there is the need to stay woke. There is nothing derogatory about the word, but when it is used to manipulate, confuse and hide the truth for political gain and power, the truth must come out. When you hear a conservative newscaster or politician use the word, notice that they never will say how a dictionary explains the meaning. Why? Because a dictionary will say the complete opposite of what they want to say, in trying to sell a bridge to their listeners in the middle of a desert. That’s their message. Just believe me because I can fix all the problems that America faces and it begins with, getting rid of all of this “wokeness”. Look at what they are doing with Critical Race Theory. They are doing everything to keep it out of classrooms and other places, not only because they don’t want to hear the truth, but don’t want minds that need to hear it, not become woke. Black teachers, educators, and preachers can teach Black people about the truth of our past to bring the awareness(woke) to this generation (and past), but will those on the other side do the same. Until people understand how the word came to be, it will be only a pawn on the chessboard, but if used as many conservative politicians are doing, it will do the damage necessary until it is sacrificed for their greater good, which is/always been power and control. It’s happening all over the nation, as more and more Black people need to be aware of what’s going on in their communities. A good example may perhaps be going on Monroe LA. Redistricting in the city is a hot topic now. Though one may not hear the word “woke,” just be aware of what the endgame of redistricting. Woke is another way of trying to convince those who see what is going on, is not what they think. They will say that racism “is dead”, no systemic injustices exists, all to tone down the activism of those who see through their plans. What is the opposite of woke or wake? You can’t fight with your eyes closed.