The earliest uses of the word “woke” in a political sense date back to the 1930s, particularly in Black vernacular speech.

One of the earliest documented examples is from folk singer Lead Belly, who in a 1938 interview warned Black people to “stay woke” in the context of the Scottsboro Boys case—a blatant miscarriage of justice involving nine Black teenagers falsely accused of raping two white women.

In this sense, “woke” meant being alert to injustice, especially racial injustice, and was used within the Black community as a warning and a call to awareness.

During the civil rights era, staying “woke” meant being politically conscious and alert to the dangers of white supremacy, state violence, and legal inequality.

The phrase experienced a resurgence in the 2010s, especially with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. It became shorthand for solidarity, political awareness, and resistance to systemic oppression.

As the term gained broader traction—often diluted or commodified—it was increasingly co-opted and vilified, particularly by right-wing commentators who turned it into a cultural slur.

But originally—and still for many today—being woke is a badge of awareness, vigilance, and social responsibility.