The term woke originates from African-American Vernacular English and initially meant being “awake” to social injustices, particularly racial ones. According to Shennan (2021), being woke refers to being aware and well-informed about cultural and political issues, especially those affecting marginalized groups in society. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2024) defines woke as being “aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice).”
Over time, however, woke and wokeism have taken on more contested meanings. In the past decade, the term has increasingly been used pejoratively, especially by critics of the socially progressive left, to mock what they see as excessive political correctness or the perceived extremism of so-called "social justice warrior-ism."
Historically, the term gained popularity in public discourse around 2011, when it was used to raise awareness of racial biases and systemic injustice against people of colour. It became more popular following the death of Michael Brown and gained global prominence with the Black Lives Matter movement, particularly after the murder of George Floyd in 2020. During this time, the anti-racist movement spread across the USA and grew significantly, becoming popular even among white Americans, who joined the protests in large numbers (Roberts, 2021, p. 46). Within this context, the term woke-washing was also introduced to describe a new wave of corporate marketing strategies. These can be understood as forms of "corporate activism" or "performative activism"—campaigns that adopt the language and aesthetics of social justice not to enact systemic change, but to protect brands from accusations of hypocrisy or potential reputational damage (Roberts, 2021, p. 46).
In the academia
In the academic sphere, wokeism has also become the subject of debate. Critics argue that it may limit freedom of expression and academic inquiry. The label ‘woke universities’ has been used—often vaguely—by politicians and some scholars to characterize academic institutions where progressive ideas allegedly suppress opposition. Several academics (Madrid Gil, 2023; Ketzl, 2025, p. 336) have voiced concern over wokeism in universities, arguing that it risks replacing critical thinking with rigid, formulaic responses to ideological "triggers." According to Gil (2023), in woke culture “it is not the weight of the argument but the social identity of the speaker (skin colour, gender or sexuality) that determines the moral rightness or wrongness of the speech.” Additionally, according to these critics, wokeism has replaced real thinking with “formulaic responses,” which will eventually lead to “a kind of mindless, thoughtless, and guard-less acceptance of readymade rhetoric” (Tomoiagă, 2022, p. 585). Ligia further claims this might endanger our reasoning and “would leave everything in the hands of those who purposefully construct answers, slogans, and propaganda”. (Tomoiagă, 2022, p. 585).
However, others contest this framing, viewing the narrative of woke universities as a politically motivated construction, often deployed by conservative critics as part of a broader cultural backlash. As noted in an article by Cherwell magazine, “‘woke universities’ is largely a reactionist creation of the right wing”. (Cherwell, 2024)
Dutch scholar Buikema underlines that the term woke—literally meaning ‘awake’—refers to a movement aimed at exposing and addressing inequality in society. She argues that there is room for the woke movement within universities, stating: “There is nothing that cannot be researched, provided it is done according to scientific rules.” (Universiteit Utrecht, 2021)
Further, Bart Cammaerts links the attacks on so-called woke academics to a process of “strategic abnormalisation” of those who challenge racist, sexist, and fascist ideologies. This phenomenon, he argues, can be critically unpacked by examining the ‘anti-woke culture war’ discourse through tools such as political discourse analysis, the discourse-historical approach, and discourse-conceptual analysis. (Cammaerts, 2022)
References
Cammaerts, B. (2022). The abnormalisation of social justice: The ‘anti-woke culture war’ discourse in the UK. Discourse & Society, 33(6), 730-743. https://doi.org/10.1177/09579265221095407 (Original work published 2022)
Cherwell. (2024) Are ‘woke’ universities a thing of the past? [Online] 15 November. Available at: https://www.cherwell.org/2024/11/15/are-woke-universities-a-thing-of-the-past/ (Accessed: 23 April 2025).
Ketzl, A. D. (2025). Knowledge Censorship in 21st Century Academia: An Overview with Attention to the Trends of Wokeism and Cancel Culture. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 13(3), 330-345.
Merriam-Webster. (2024). Woke. Merriam-Webster. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woke
Roberts, J. (2021). “Woke” Culture: The Societal and Political Implications of Black Lives Matter Digital Activism. In Democracy in the Disinformation Age (pp. 37-57). Routledge.
Shennan, R. (2021, April 8). What does woke mean? Definition of woke culture in 2023 and what critics mean by ‘woke police’. National World. https://www.nationalworld.com/whats-on/arts-and-entertainment/what-does-wokemean-definition-woke-culture-2023-3215758
Tomoiagă, L. (2022). Woke-Ism and Its Role in Cancelling Culture. Buletin Stiintific, seria A, Fascicula Filologie, 31(1), 585-603.
Universiteit Utrecht. (2021, April 13). Er is plaats voor de woke-beweging op de universiteit. https://www.uu.nl/in-de-media/er-is-plaats-voor-de-woke-beweging-op-de-universiteit
