1. ”Is there space among the woke for the still-waking?”
2. Is there hope for non-Christians to see the light of Christ.?
My hunch is that at least some of my fellow Ink readers, maybe most, might take offense to the second question, especially if posed in a political context. In its beginning, “wokeness” resembled the Jesus movement before Paul, then Constantine who transformed it into a religion, the State’s religion no less. Then the Jesus movement, which had been grounded in the acceptance of the vagaries of the imperfect human experience(specifically beginning with His experience) a shared faith in Jesus’ divine authenticity piercing the hypocrisy of the ruling secular and clerical class, became itself a tool of oppression. The right words, they right doctrines, the right ceremonies…say them, do them or be cast out or, worse, be physically punished, burned at the stake.
For me, an aging white liberal male, a professional veteran of over 45 years of elections where we Democrats of the 70s, 80s, 90s fought lost, and won elections with Republicans, the beginnings of the “woke” movement felt like the natural next step in answering Martin Luther King’s last question before he was murdered: “Where do we go from here?” This question is the title of his last book. One he wrote in seclusion in a rental house on Caribbean island. He had retreated there to stock of his movement. The Vietnam War was raging, Newark had just burned in riots…yet the Movement had seen passed the ground changing Civil and Voting Rights Acts.
But what next? King lamented that laws were not enough. The next task was changing hearts and minds to exorcise racism from the body politic. How? Was the question. His answers were a combination programatic change of institutions with the earnest dialogue and rhetoric of Love fueling the hard work of political and cultural change.
Enter the “woke” movement. As I participated in political and churched led iterations of the movement I soon learned that unless I transformed my vocabulary first, my intentions and experience were not enough. Confess! Shame, blame and obligation became the unspoken watch words of the movement. Get the “liturgy” right or get out. There was an arrogance based on a righteous fundamentalist mind set. Pass the test we have devised BEFORE we can have the conversation. I remained a Democrat, voted for our candidates, argued against the forces of reaction. But watched as the success of Democrat policies and programs…the hard word of politics was swallowed, overshadowed by the righteousness of group people telling others the “un-woke” how to talk, to be ashamed of their heritage, to above all else to repent or be damned. Arrogance. Righteousness. No matter, then, that my party was fighting for them, winning for them, they became and stayed resentful, angry.
As well intentioned and valuable as Anand’s piece is, the answer to her question about space available in the “woke” movement may lie in the nature of the entrance requirements. My hope is that they loosen up considerably. There is one helluva lot work to do to answer Martin’s question.
That is exquisite Anand. Yet, I believe now for this kind of change to occur, there will have to be massive destruction in order to rebuild. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and what that might look like I don’t know. And how sad it will be.
Thank you, Anand. I agree that each person, including me, need to act locally. In my case, I communicate by email with the mayor of my small city. I'm going to give him my copy of The Guarantee by Natalie Foster, fot its several examples of how good change can help unhoused people and others less favored. At the same time I support numerous projects in this and other countries. I believe I am both this person here and one of billions in the human race on planet (Mother) earth.
Anand! Who the heck are you???? My angel helping me see the future. My mother wrote a letter to the red part of our family that was beautiful. She reached out to all of them. It was from the perspective of an 89 year old about joy and growing and openness! You, my dear, are a gift!
Arnand, this was both beautiful and hard to read. But it has me thinking and reflecting. Yes, our system is broken, and yes, it will need massive change to right the course, or to identify a new course. And it's so necessary that we get out of our two party way of thinking. I've naively never understood why we can't all just be "people." Not white, black, yellow, trans, gay or polka dotted. Just people of this earth.
It's hard to accept that I will not be around to possibly see this new direction or "wokeness", but history tells me that will be the case. And therein lies an issue for everyone. Few want to be on the journey, per se, but rather they want to live in and see the results. They want it now. And real change takes time and intent. Martin Luther King Jr. lost his life to it as have many other activists for change and justice for all have. But they created sparks.
I don't have all of the answers, or even a few yet. I don't have a lovely, flowing essay that I can share as you've done. But I do have hope and direction. The best that I have for now is real engagement in my community, and being a lighthouse. I will borrow from Anne Lamott here:
"Lighthouses don't go running all over an island looking for boats to save; they just stand there shining."
Real wokeness is a journey and takes engagement and acceptance. Each of us, to my mind, should quit looking outward at others all of the time, and look inwards to our real truths. It's hard to understand how there is so much hate and grievance, but there is. Is this really what they want in this world? I can't change these people, they must change themselves. I can only model civil, engaged behavior with tolerance and resist the hate and disruption many want to promote.
Thank you for your insight and caring, Arnand. I'm looking at the starfish analogy in an entirely different way now. :)
Thank you for creating this community. It's exactly what I needed. Since last Tuesday, I’ve been diving in, reading as much as I can, listening to different perspectives, and, frankly, just showing up without an agenda because I wasn’t sure what the way forward looked like. But by continuing to show up—and because I refuse to give up on democracy and equality—I found myself taking my first step forward. Thank you, Anand, for making this possible.
“We need to root in physical community, not online algorithms.”
This line hit me hard, especially as someone who contributed during the election in the digital space. I’ve scheduled a few meetings with people in my community who didn’t vote, and I just listened. So informative thus far.
So, everyone, keep showing up. You may not know what will move you to action or spark that aha moment, but it will happen. Come with curiosity, create a judgment-free safe zone, and embrace possibility. Together, we can carve out the path forward.
You're just amazing, Anand. First time commenting, and that's all I have to say. This essay and the commencement speech at Sidwell Friends (I went to Westtown - another Quaker school, as you probably know) are just amazing, incisive and clear. Thank you for all you do...and say.
Thank you for sharing this. Much needed at this time. Right before the pandemic, I introduced a new mantra to our nonprofit org of LOVE. COMPASSION. COMMUNITY. Timing couldn't have been better. It was a tool to help my team view everything they did during this time through this lens. It grounded us, and opened our hearts. I still use it when struggling through difficult times. Seems to align with your writing.
I loved "The Persuaders" and I am so glad to have found your substack last week, in time to read this entry. I will share it widely. Yes, we still seem to need it as much as ever. But it's hopeful, too. Thank you.
Compare these questions
1. ”Is there space among the woke for the still-waking?”
2. Is there hope for non-Christians to see the light of Christ.?
My hunch is that at least some of my fellow Ink readers, maybe most, might take offense to the second question, especially if posed in a political context. In its beginning, “wokeness” resembled the Jesus movement before Paul, then Constantine who transformed it into a religion, the State’s religion no less. Then the Jesus movement, which had been grounded in the acceptance of the vagaries of the imperfect human experience(specifically beginning with His experience) a shared faith in Jesus’ divine authenticity piercing the hypocrisy of the ruling secular and clerical class, became itself a tool of oppression. The right words, they right doctrines, the right ceremonies…say them, do them or be cast out or, worse, be physically punished, burned at the stake.
For me, an aging white liberal male, a professional veteran of over 45 years of elections where we Democrats of the 70s, 80s, 90s fought lost, and won elections with Republicans, the beginnings of the “woke” movement felt like the natural next step in answering Martin Luther King’s last question before he was murdered: “Where do we go from here?” This question is the title of his last book. One he wrote in seclusion in a rental house on Caribbean island. He had retreated there to stock of his movement. The Vietnam War was raging, Newark had just burned in riots…yet the Movement had seen passed the ground changing Civil and Voting Rights Acts.
But what next? King lamented that laws were not enough. The next task was changing hearts and minds to exorcise racism from the body politic. How? Was the question. His answers were a combination programatic change of institutions with the earnest dialogue and rhetoric of Love fueling the hard work of political and cultural change.
Enter the “woke” movement. As I participated in political and churched led iterations of the movement I soon learned that unless I transformed my vocabulary first, my intentions and experience were not enough. Confess! Shame, blame and obligation became the unspoken watch words of the movement. Get the “liturgy” right or get out. There was an arrogance based on a righteous fundamentalist mind set. Pass the test we have devised BEFORE we can have the conversation. I remained a Democrat, voted for our candidates, argued against the forces of reaction. But watched as the success of Democrat policies and programs…the hard word of politics was swallowed, overshadowed by the righteousness of group people telling others the “un-woke” how to talk, to be ashamed of their heritage, to above all else to repent or be damned. Arrogance. Righteousness. No matter, then, that my party was fighting for them, winning for them, they became and stayed resentful, angry.
As well intentioned and valuable as Anand’s piece is, the answer to her question about space available in the “woke” movement may lie in the nature of the entrance requirements. My hope is that they loosen up considerably. There is one helluva lot work to do to answer Martin’s question.
That is exquisite Anand. Yet, I believe now for this kind of change to occur, there will have to be massive destruction in order to rebuild. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and what that might look like I don’t know. And how sad it will be.
Thank you, Anand. I agree that each person, including me, need to act locally. In my case, I communicate by email with the mayor of my small city. I'm going to give him my copy of The Guarantee by Natalie Foster, fot its several examples of how good change can help unhoused people and others less favored. At the same time I support numerous projects in this and other countries. I believe I am both this person here and one of billions in the human race on planet (Mother) earth.
Anand! Who the heck are you???? My angel helping me see the future. My mother wrote a letter to the red part of our family that was beautiful. She reached out to all of them. It was from the perspective of an 89 year old about joy and growing and openness! You, my dear, are a gift!
Arnand, this was both beautiful and hard to read. But it has me thinking and reflecting. Yes, our system is broken, and yes, it will need massive change to right the course, or to identify a new course. And it's so necessary that we get out of our two party way of thinking. I've naively never understood why we can't all just be "people." Not white, black, yellow, trans, gay or polka dotted. Just people of this earth.
It's hard to accept that I will not be around to possibly see this new direction or "wokeness", but history tells me that will be the case. And therein lies an issue for everyone. Few want to be on the journey, per se, but rather they want to live in and see the results. They want it now. And real change takes time and intent. Martin Luther King Jr. lost his life to it as have many other activists for change and justice for all have. But they created sparks.
I don't have all of the answers, or even a few yet. I don't have a lovely, flowing essay that I can share as you've done. But I do have hope and direction. The best that I have for now is real engagement in my community, and being a lighthouse. I will borrow from Anne Lamott here:
"Lighthouses don't go running all over an island looking for boats to save; they just stand there shining."
Real wokeness is a journey and takes engagement and acceptance. Each of us, to my mind, should quit looking outward at others all of the time, and look inwards to our real truths. It's hard to understand how there is so much hate and grievance, but there is. Is this really what they want in this world? I can't change these people, they must change themselves. I can only model civil, engaged behavior with tolerance and resist the hate and disruption many want to promote.
Thank you for your insight and caring, Arnand. I'm looking at the starfish analogy in an entirely different way now. :)
Thank you for creating this community. It's exactly what I needed. Since last Tuesday, I’ve been diving in, reading as much as I can, listening to different perspectives, and, frankly, just showing up without an agenda because I wasn’t sure what the way forward looked like. But by continuing to show up—and because I refuse to give up on democracy and equality—I found myself taking my first step forward. Thank you, Anand, for making this possible.
“We need to root in physical community, not online algorithms.”
This line hit me hard, especially as someone who contributed during the election in the digital space. I’ve scheduled a few meetings with people in my community who didn’t vote, and I just listened. So informative thus far.
So, everyone, keep showing up. You may not know what will move you to action or spark that aha moment, but it will happen. Come with curiosity, create a judgment-free safe zone, and embrace possibility. Together, we can carve out the path forward.
You're just amazing, Anand. First time commenting, and that's all I have to say. This essay and the commencement speech at Sidwell Friends (I went to Westtown - another Quaker school, as you probably know) are just amazing, incisive and clear. Thank you for all you do...and say.
Thank you for sharing this. Much needed at this time. Right before the pandemic, I introduced a new mantra to our nonprofit org of LOVE. COMPASSION. COMMUNITY. Timing couldn't have been better. It was a tool to help my team view everything they did during this time through this lens. It grounded us, and opened our hearts. I still use it when struggling through difficult times. Seems to align with your writing.
I loved "The Persuaders" and I am so glad to have found your substack last week, in time to read this entry. I will share it widely. Yes, we still seem to need it as much as ever. But it's hopeful, too. Thank you.