Oh the power of a single word - WOKE.
"Woke" has been in use since the 1920's. Its origins is part of the Black American lexicon, a term that stands by itself, coming into recent prominence with the Black Lives Matter movement, the murder of the George Floyd in Minneapolis, and the ICE raids in Minnesota and elsewhere in the United States. It is an evocation to an awareness of what is in all of its dimensions.
It is a call to recognize the full scope of humanity in all of its diversity; to see the inherent equality in each and every person born on our mutual planet home to be who they are. That woke has caused a vitriolic reaction by those who share my shade of skin color causes me to feel deep embarrassment and anger at the small mindedness and willful ignorance displayed especially by those in leadership positions.
Racism is a human curse imposed on ourselves. There is no divine injunction decreeing that a given skin color, physical feature, place of birth or one's cultural must result in maltreatment. There is no purpose served in degrading any life forms on this planet.
Woke is where the human world needs to be - totally aware of each other's needs to the extent that one is motivated to find ways of fulfilling such needs and engaging with each other to make our planet home the best world in which all life abounds in universal harmony.
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WOKE
OH TO BE WOKE
To the diversity we present and the sameness we share,
To the differences that matter and those that do not.
OH TO BE WOKE
To the illusion of wealth and the flash pan of power,
To every injustice imbued by circumstance and identity,
OH TO BE WOKE
To the world we created and the world we could remake,
To the interdependence of universal life.
OH TO BE WOKE
To the porous reality of all things concrete,
To the privilege of being who and where we are.
OH TO BE WOKE!
Norm Wright
