In honor of Black History Month…
“Woke” is an appropriated term that has become a colloquialism loosely meaning “having a moral compass” in the face of systemic oppression. Its original usage was “stay woke,” unintentionally coined by blues musician Lead Belly.
In a 1938 he was recording his song “Scottsboro Boys,” ending it with spoken word about the song’s meaning.
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#BlackHistoryMonth #Woke #LeadBelly #Music #History #CulturalAppropriation
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Mark Wyner Won’t Comply
in reply to Mark Wyner Won’t Comply • • •The Scottsboro boys were a group of nine young Black men who were falsely accused of raping two white women in Alabama seven years earlier, simply for being Black and having been found on a train car with them.
In his monologue he says “I advise everybody, be a little careful when they go along through there—best *stay woke*, keep their eyes open” (“there,” referring to Alabama).
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Mark Wyner Won’t Comply
in reply to Mark Wyner Won’t Comply • • •So his use of “stay woke” was a message specifically directed at Black folks, to make sure they stayed alert and safe in perilous places.
The appropriated version of “woke” vs Lead Belly’s version are in the same arena, but their nuanced difference is meaningful.
More:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_Bel…
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(Update, per @Mabande: Lead Belly was the first known recorded use of the phrase which was likely used well before this. mastodon.social/@Mabande/11404…)
American folk and blues musician (1888–1949)
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)L'égrégore André ꕭꕬ
2025-02-22 11:08:41
L'égrégore André ꕭꕬ
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Mark Wyner Won’t Comply
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