The word “woke” has existed in the Black community for years. Created by Black Power movements dating to the 1930s, Black revolutionaries have defined the term as the action of Black people being conscious of the truth and not being under a distorted reality. To be woke is to be interpreted as being awakened from the slumber of mental slavery many Black people across the world are still under.

The word woke itself is unique, one of the reasons being that this word, like others, is only designated for Black people. This word exclusively applies to us and no other people due to our experience with oppression. Today, non-Black people who assume they have the right to adopt the term overlook its true context and purpose. Non-Black people who use woke because it embodies the process of being radically aware of the society we all live in is not only misused, but is condemned by Black revolutionaries, including myself.

With this word being so bastardized in the modern day, it tends to get tossed around in weak punchlines by those who mock Black people in online chatrooms for the reward of a dry laugh from peers. Viewing the current use of the word, it is used in the mockery of Black people by other races, politics, alt-right white supremacist groups and a handful of Black people who say they’re for the people but really aren’t. Altogether, the word has been taken away from its original meaning, leaving most Black people without the knowledge of its profound significance and misusing it. But how did a word with such meaning become a signal word for facades of proclaimed revolutionaries and essentially become a dead name to Black people? Well, the short answer is white people, but once again, this answer is more complex than you may think.

Woke is a participle adjective and a part of AAVE (African American Vernacular English), often misused by different demographics. As I defined it before, woke is the action of Black people being conscious of the truth. The definition of woke can be understood as the beginning of a revolution inside the brain that manifests into reality. In the origin of this word, examples of how woke is used correctly are in the Black revolutionary perspective. An example of how this word is used correctly is from the 1970s play “Garvey Lives!” written by Barry Beckham. Beckham writes: “I’ve been sleeping all my life. And now that Mr. Garvey done woke me up, I’m gon’ stay woke.” In the line, the word is used to describe the action of being woke and shows the remaining woke state the person is in from learning about Marcus Garvey, a Black revolutionary who in the early 20th century was a leader in the creation of the Pan-Africanist movement. Along with the grammatical correctness of the word is the connotation of it, too. With the purpose of woke being exclusive to Black people, it creates the additional meaning, which is only to be applied to Black people who have unlearned white supremacy and adopted an emancipated mindset. Anything outside that given definition is incorrect.

Now that there is an idea of how woke is used correctly, here are some examples of how it is misused. In politics, where non-Black people are describing people who are Democratic or Republican as woke because of some sort of radical awakening, is automatically incorrect.

When a Black person claims that a non-Black person is woke for being aware of social injustices is erroneous. Self-proclaimed Black revolutionaries who participate in the division of the Black community, claiming themselves as woke, are flawed and in denial. And lastly, racist echo chambers where white supremacists use this term to differentiate different types of white supremacists based on how woke they are, and mocking Black people with this term, will always be incorrect. The word woke was never meant for such loose interpretation and to be open just for anybody to use. Woke only applies to Black people who are legitimately woke.

Time and time again, woke is misused by Black people who do not know about Black revolutionaries and non-Black people and chose to take the term and run with it. When Black revolutionaries used this term, it was much deeper than waking up from the lies you’ve been told throughout your history. It was also the beginning of a non-televised revolution that birthed many leaders in the Black community. Part of the reason why Black people are misinformed about this word is because of not being taught about Black revolutionaries in school and instead, being educated on their oppressors. This allows pro-Black thought by revolutionaries to be untaught and misinterpreted by the masses. As for other non-Black people, no amount of education can stop them all from dragging the word through turmoil and erasing its original meaning. Woke for me, however, will always be a word of resilience in a world of oppression, being free from all restraints against me and those who look like me.

In the future, if Black people as a collective want words like woke to be protected and not killed by the abuse of those who do not look like us, our energy should be geared toward educating ourselves instead of those outside of our community so we can work to preserve our ways of effectively communicating with each other.

Mya Bentick is a talented youth writer, reporter, and intern born and raised in Boston. With a passion for writing, she thrives on telling stories that inform, and provoke thought to her audience. Her writing often explores social issues, and entertainment, through her unique perspective as a young Black Caribbean American woman and enjoys reimagining the society we live in.