Former Democratic U.S. Senator Doug Jones thinks that too many people on both sides of the political isle are using the term “woke” as a partisan weapon instead of a call for unity.
“People on both sides of the aisle need to just to put that term away as a political weapon and start using it to better understand and benefit all society,” Jones said during a recent interview with WAAY 31 News.
According to many on the right, woke has come to mean being an extreme progressive or leftist, while many on the left believe the term means to be more aware of issues of racial and social justice. After President Trump’s domination of the 2024 election and GOP recapture of the U.S. Senate and House, political pundits like Jones are mulling the term’s use.
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“I think that any time people become aware when they weren’t really fully aware of injustices, whether it’s racial, social, whatever, and they become aware, and they want, would like to do something to rectify those injustices,” Jones argued.
“I think that’s a good thing. Unfortunately, there are folks in this country who see that as a radical view, which is not a radical view, and they tend to weaponize it. They tend to use it as a political term against political opponents trying to imply that there is some sort of far left radical agenda, when it’s really not. It’s really just simply making sure people are aware of what is going on in this country and this world and trying to rectify wrongs. And no one should be opposed to that.”
The former lawmaker said the fight against racial discrimination hasn’t ended in America.
“There’s still discrimination in this country that exists today,” he added, “and so I felt it appropriate to try to use my position as a United States senator to try to just bring attention to those so that other people might recognize these.”
When asked if he considered himself woke, Jones responded that it depends on the current definition of the word.
“If that term means: How have I become aware over the course of my many, many years on this earth of injustices that still exist, and have I tried to have a career and a public life to try to help correct those justices? Fine, I don’t really give a damn if somebody wants to charge me with that label or not, because I think it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “I think we should be treating everyone with the same dignity and respect, and giving everyone the same opportunities.”
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
