If you’re a regular Twitter user, you may have noticed people describing themselves as woke, or advising others to stay woke. To be woke, says Cassandra Lord, a professor of historical studies and of women and gender studies at U of T Mississauga, is to be conscious of the racial and social inequities experienced by black people – in the past and today. The term has been used widely by the Black Lives Matter movement, and emerges from African-American vernacular as a call to action, she says.
While the term has taken on a life of its own outside of black communities, Lord says those who use it are typically demanding an examination of power and privilege, and a commitment to dismantling systemic forms of anti-black racism.
Recent Posts
Three Moments from Fall 2020
Convocation Hall’s new top, preparing for virtual labs, and a spectacular campus trail that’s accessible to all
What the Zebrafish Can Tell Us
How this tiny animal is helping scientists investigate disorders of the human brain