“I didn’t like that show, it’s just so woke.”
That’s a phrase I’ve been hearing a fair bit lately, both online and out in the real world. I cannot think of a lazier line of criticism. It’s the ultimate dismissal of something just because it doesn’t appeal to you directly. Frankly, I balk at the use of it as a derogative and as the title of this blog states, I am exceedingly proud to consider myself ‘woke’. If you’re the kind of person who uses it to dismiss anything and everything you don’t like, you might want to scroll back now.
To be ‘woke’ is to be actively alert to injustice in society. To be the opposite, essentially ‘asleep’, is to ignore injustice. Now, if those of you who vehemently disagree with me have managed to get beyond the first paragraph, you’ll no doubt be saying “That’s now what ‘woke’ means now!” Well, I’ve yet to come across anyone who can provide another definition beyond that of being alert to injustice. However, let’s take a little look at what some people might mean when they say that something is ‘too woke’, shall we?
For many, the second a character that’s LGBTQ appears in a show, that show has become ‘woke’. Perhaps I should say an LGBTQ character that actually talks about what it means to be LGBTQ. The same can be said if a character actively talks about their culture, their race or their religion. For those who use ‘woke’ as the ultimate insult, the show they’ve settled down to watch has suddenly become too much for them to continue with. They might have been enjoying it up until then, but now it’s just ‘too woke’.
Let’s examine that for a moment. Whenever I hear someone say a character was brought in just to make the show woke, or indeed for a dose of virtue signalling, what they’re really saying is that there are certain demographics of society they don’t wish to hear from or see. That’s what it boils down to. A character has popped up and introduced an issue that *you* cannot personally identify with, and therefore the whole show must be dismissed as ‘woke’. That is what very few people will actually admit, that they don’t want to be confronted with people and stories that are just too ‘different’ for their liking. That’s an uncomfortable truth for some, so they justify their discomfort by blaming the makers of the show for being (that all too convenient word) ‘woke’.
The thing is, being ‘woke’ is nothing new. It’s been known by many different terms over the years, and for those who are so vehemently opposed to seeing certain demographics of people represented, there has always been a way to seemingly turn being alert to injustice into an insult. ‘Do-gooder’ is quite an old fashioned one, as though doing good for others is something to be mocked. ‘Bleeding heart’ was another way to dismiss anyone who actually showed any sense of empathy to others. On reflection, I’d rather be a bleeding heart do-gooder than a self centred sociopath.
When it comes to storylines in a mainstream media show, there are those who’ll cry “I’ve got nothing against these people or these issues, I just don’t like the way it’s been done. It’s shoved down our throats and the story is told badly, that’s what makes it woke!” Well, we certainly can’t deny that there is bad storytelling out there. Poorly written scripts, bad editing, bad acting and goodness knows what else can certainly put an audience off. However, most bad shows simply get written off as such. However it seems, in my view, that it’s only when certain demographics of society usually regarded as a minority step into the limelight for a moment that a show is dismissed as both ‘bad’ and ‘woke’. Almost as if the mere inclusion of certain demographics instantly brings the quality of the show down. A gay or trans character popping up somehow equates to something being ‘shoved down our throats’.
Firstly, nobody’s forcing you to watch. If you really, really don’t like seeing a certain kind of people on your telly, switch over. Secondly, I grew up watching media that was overwhelmingly dominated by cis and heterosexual characters. Were they being ‘shoved down my throat’, or were they just there to tell a story? If I screwed up my face and switched over every time I saw a show that featured a storyline with a straight couple, I’d end up with very little to watch at all. Surprisingly enough, I actually rather enjoy seeing various demographics of society represented in the media. It is a tremendous opportunity for me to learn more about people. I’m not trans myself, but when I see a trans character portrayed in a show I come away at the end thinking “Wow, that’s a story from someone with different experiences to my own.” I am enriched by it, yet there are some who seem to think that hearing other people’s stories is somehow taking something away.
There’s that old saying, ‘when you’re used to privilege, equality can feel like oppression’. As a society, I do feel we are moving onwards and upwards. We are looking to those who have been ignored in the past and saying ‘Please, tell us your story’. We are actively looking to include more people from different cultures and recognise the place they have in society today. We are no longer pushing people with disabilities to one side and pretending they don’t exist. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans characters are no longer there to just be a punchline, but to actually tell a story. Again, if you don’t wish to hear those stories, switch over or off, but you might just end up feeling somewhat lonely. The world is full of stories, the vast majority of which will differ from those we feel are our own stories. That is the beauty and the strength of diversity.
When it comes to the media, only wishing to see yourself reflected all the time is just frankly unhealthy. That’s what mirrors are for. Human communication has evolved to the point where we can instantly connect with people who would have been unreachable before. The media we produce should reflect that, as well as the vast range of experiences that make up the human condition. Those who seek to dismiss the experiences of others for just being too different are, quite frankly, missing out.
David R Lord 