In the last few years, mostly in the contexts of entertainment and social justice, the term “woke” has become a lightning rod for national discourse. More recently, the word has come to define media that focuses on social equity, diverse representation, and inclusivity. Its critics contend that due to overuse and misuse, the meaning of the term has been lost. Critics argue that it serves as a vague umbrella term for all social injustices.
“At its most basic level ‘woke’ is just an expression of awareness to social injustice and inequity,” one social media observer remarked. Unfortunately, this definition has become slippery, morphing to fit different meanings based on who is talking and what the context is. Others use the term to attack films with women, people of color, LGBT characters, and diversity in general.
As critics point out, these complaints against films — particularly ones starring women or featuring an inclusive cast — just don’t add up. For one thing, they argue, these criticisms almost never target the characters. Rather, they argue that these critiques are the product of bad prose or not being original enough. One user remarked, “even if your comment is a joke, for the love of Christ, shut the [frick] up,” highlighting the frustration with dismissive attitudes towards diverse narratives.
This extreme backlash towards anything perceived as “woke” is evident in the outcry against certain characters and storylines. Similarly, the character Kingpin has made a similar turn, recently being nicknamed by some as “Kamala Trump.” Critics are already up in arms, denouncing it as a clear case of wokeism run amok. Just as radical, the development of Daredevil—a blind superhero—has been called “woke” by some of the loudest trumpets of the culture war.
Beyond these, other characters such as Ben Urich have been derided as cases of a “awesome race-swap” in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This creative alteration has sparked additional discussion around representation in media and if these changes are for the better or worse in service of the story.
The term “woke” acquired a more generally pejorative meaning. Critics claim it has gotten co-opted to be weaponized against approaches focused on social justice. People are trying to make the anachronistic modern buzzword “woke” analogous to the 14th century witch hunts. They argue that the term “woke,” when used as an insult today, is analogous to the accusation of witchcraft back in the day. This analogy serves to show how dangerously language can be weaponized in order to delegitimize well-founded critique and apprehension.
As one user put it, we officially salute Stan Lee as “one woke MF.” This is important because it shows how difficult a term the “Afrofuturism” can be, even for builders who are celebrated for their abstract storytelling work. This sentiment demonstrates the constant challenge of being able to engage meaningfully in these conversations about representation without mindlessly falling into simplistic oppositional binaries.
In addition, there is an urge for true representation in storytelling. One user stated, “We need a stand-up Black man to author stories that stand-up Black men want to see,” emphasizing the need for narratives crafted by individuals who share the experiences being depicted.
Those against the movement counter that the increasing use of “woke” aims to inject politics into every aspect of entertainment. They see this growing tendency threatening to overshadow the artistry itself. For these users, Hollywood’s continued efforts to advance the so-called “woke” agenda come at the expense of creative storytelling.