{"id":336,"date":"2025-08-14T00:19:50","date_gmt":"2025-08-14T06:19:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.net\/blog2\/?p=336"},"modified":"2025-08-19T17:42:54","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T17:42:54","slug":"__trashed-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/?p=336","title":{"rendered":"The Rise and Fall of \u201cWoke\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Introduction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Every political era has its keywords. In the 1960s, it was \u201cradical.\u201d In the 1990s, it was \u201cpolitically correct.\u201d In the 2020s, it is \u201cwoke.\u201d Each of these began as a positive or at least neutral self-description within progressive movements, only to be twisted, mocked, and ultimately weaponized by conservative strategists. The pattern is clear: take the language of your opponent, strip it of nuance, and repeat it in ways that make it distasteful to the broader public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is not accidental. It is a well-honed rhetorical tactic, rooted in decades of conservative communication strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What \u201cWoke\u201d Originally Meant<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The word \u201cwoke\u201d originated in African American Vernacular English, simply meaning to be awake to social injustice\u2014especially racism. \u201cStay woke\u201d was both a warning and a call to vigilance. By the mid-2010s, it spread into mainstream progressive language, symbolizing awareness of systemic inequality, including race, gender, sexuality, and climate justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a brief moment, \u201cwoke\u201d was a badge of honor. It captured the idea of being socially conscious, engaged, and unwilling to ignore oppression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Conservative Playbook: Appropriation and Reversal<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Conservatives quickly saw the power of the term\u2014and the opportunity to flip it. The tactic follows a recognizable playbook:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Appropriation<\/strong><br>Adopt the opponent\u2019s term and repeat it relentlessly. At first, it seems like acknowledgment. But repetition shifts the term\u2019s audience and meaning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Exaggeration<\/strong><br>Frame the term in its most extreme or absurd light. \u201cWoke\u201d stops meaning \u201caware of injustice\u201d and instead becomes \u201cobsessed with identity politics,\u201d \u201canti-free speech,\u201d or even \u201cunpatriotic.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mockery<\/strong><br>Turn the term into a punchline. Conservative media saturates discourse with sarcastic references\u2014\u201cthe woke mob,\u201d \u201cwoke capital,\u201d \u201cwoke snowflakes.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Contamination<\/strong><br>The term becomes socially costly to identify with. Even moderates who once saw themselves as \u201cwoke\u201d start distancing themselves from the word to avoid ridicule.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Replacement<\/strong><br>Once discredited, the original concept is harder to advocate for. People stop saying \u201cwoke,\u201d just as they stopped saying \u201cpolitically correct.\u201d The movement loses its unifying shorthand.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This strategy is effective because it does not require defeating the actual ideas\u2014it only requires poisoning the word that represents them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Historical Precedent: From \u201cPC\u201d to \u201cWoke\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The same process destroyed the usefulness of \u201cpolitical correctness\u201d in the 1990s. Initially, it was an internal progressive critique of language policing. Conservatives seized it, exaggerated it into absurdity, and turned \u201cPC\u201d into a national joke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today, the same has happened with \u201cwoke.\u201d Polling shows that while many Americans still support the underlying values (anti-racism, equality, inclusion), fewer want to be associated with the term \u201cwoke.\u201d The tactic works because it detaches the word from the idea, leaving advocates linguistically disarmed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Communication Strategy Behind the Tactic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This approach isn\u2019t random. It is grounded in decades of conservative communication strategy, particularly the idea of&nbsp;<strong>framing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Frank Luntz<\/strong>, a Republican pollster and strategist, popularized the method in his book&nbsp;<em>Words That Work<\/em>&nbsp;(2007). He showed how altering terminology\u2014calling \u201cestate tax\u201d the \u201cdeath tax,\u201d for example\u2014shifts public opinion without changing the underlying policy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lee Atwater<\/strong>, a Republican strategist in the 1980s, openly described the shift from overtly racist language to coded appeals\u2014proof of how conservatives understood the power of linguistic reframing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Newt Gingrich\u2019s GOPAC Memo<\/strong>&nbsp;(1990) encouraged Republicans to use emotionally charged words like \u201ccorrupt,\u201d \u201csick,\u201d and \u201cpathetic\u201d to describe opponents, while reserving positive words for themselves. This memo is one of the clearest guides to language weaponization in modern U.S. politics.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Together, these sources outline the philosophy: words don\u2019t just describe reality\u2014they shape it. By controlling the terms of debate, you control the debate itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why It Works<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Simplicity<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 Mockery is easier to spread than nuance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Emotion<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 Words like \u201cwoke\u201d are attached to moral outrage, making them sticky in the public imagination.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Identity<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 Rejecting \u201cwokeness\u201d becomes part of conservative identity, while embracing it becomes costly for moderates.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Media Ecosystem<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2013 Conservative media outlets reinforce the framing relentlessly, ensuring saturation.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Conclusion: The Lesson for Progressive Movements<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The appropriation of \u201cwoke\u201d shows that no term is safe from weaponization. As long as conservatives use this tactic, progressives must prepare for linguistic battles as seriously as policy battles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One option is to avoid over-investing in single words as movement slogans, since they can be poisoned. Another is to fight back not by defending the term, but by calling out the tactic itself\u2014exposing the strategy of appropriation and mocking the mockery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fall of \u201cwoke\u201d was not inevitable. It was engineered. And unless we recognize the playbook, it will happen again to the next word that captures progressive energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:24px\">References: Conservative Strategy Texts on Language and Framing<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1.&nbsp;<strong>Frank Luntz \u2013&nbsp;<em>Words That Work<\/em>&nbsp;(2007)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Luntz, a Republican pollster and strategist, is one of the best-known architects of conservative language strategy. His core argument is simple:&nbsp;<em>it doesn\u2019t matter what you say, it matters what people hear.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Famous for rebranding the \u201cestate tax\u201d as the \u201cdeath tax.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Promoted phrases like \u201cclimate change\u201d instead of \u201cglobal warming\u201d to soften urgency.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>His work shows how conservatives intentionally test and craft words to shape public opinion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2.&nbsp;<strong>Newt Gingrich \u2013 GOPAC Memo (\u201cLanguage: A Key Mechanism of Control,\u201d 1990)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This internal training document for Republican candidates urged them to use carefully chosen words to frame opponents negatively and themselves positively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>\u201cCorrupt, sick, pathetic, traitors\u201d were suggested for Democrats.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cCourage, strength, principled, reform\u201d were reserved for Republicans.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Explicitly framed politics as linguistic warfare.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3.&nbsp;<strong>Lee Atwater \u2013 Southern Strategy &amp; Dog Whistle Politics<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Atwater, a Republican strategist in the Reagan\/Bush era, gave a now-infamous interview explaining how conservative rhetoric shifted from overt racism to coded language:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Explicit slurs gave way to abstract terms like \u201cstates\u2019 rights\u201d and \u201ccutting taxes.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Language became less offensive on the surface but preserved racialized outcomes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>His candor shows how word choice is deliberately used to obscure intent.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4.&nbsp;<strong>George Lakoff \u2013&nbsp;<em>Don\u2019t Think of an Elephant!<\/em>&nbsp;(2004)<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Though Lakoff is a progressive linguist, his book documents how conservatives excel at&nbsp;<em>framing<\/em>. His analysis highlights how the right consistently outmaneuvers the left by controlling key terms in public debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Conservatives talk about \u201ctax relief\u201d (implying taxes are a burden), never \u201cpublic investment.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Shows how progressives lose when they adopt conservative language instead of reframing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">5.&nbsp;<strong>The Heritage Foundation \/ Conservative Think Tanks<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Conservative policy shops have published numerous guides and talking-point briefs that emphasize&nbsp;<em>messaging first<\/em>. These don\u2019t always read like strategy manuals, but they serve the same function: teaching operatives how to brand opponents and neutralize progressive language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">6.&nbsp;<strong>Right-Wing Media Echo Chambers<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While not a single text, outlets like Fox News, Breitbart, and talk radio have operationalized these linguistic tactics. Once a word is flipped (\u201cwoke,\u201d \u201cCRT,\u201d \u201ccancel culture\u201d, &#8220;DEI&#8221;), repetition across these media ensures saturation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-medium-font-size\">Key Takeaway<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These documents and thinkers show that conservatives view&nbsp;<em>language itself<\/em>&nbsp;as a battleground. The appropriation of \u201cwoke\u201d is not accidental\u2014it follows decades of strategy rooted in deliberate framing, repetition, and contamination of opponents\u2019 words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong>Final thoughts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I believe in the end &#8220;DEI&#8221; will be the one term that conservatives cannot flip. They have reached the straw-man limit. Trying to poison this word will cost conservatives as most of society cannot get behind racism. They overreached, a &#8220;jumping of the shark&#8221; moment for conservatives.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Introduction Every political era has its keywords. In the 1960s, it was \u201cradical.\u201d In the 1990s, it was \u201cpolitically correct.\u201d In the 2020s, it is \u201cwoke.\u201d Each of these began <a href=\"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/?p=336\" class=\"more-link\">[&hellip;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"Layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["entry","author-jayson","post-336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-main"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=336"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":401,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336\/revisions\/401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wolvesofthewest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}