Book reviewed: Woke Racism: How a New Religion Has Betrayed Black America by John McWhorter.

The racial dynamics of wokism Wokism is an alert to racial prejudice and discrimination, being a White person gives you privilege, and that makes Black people victims. The antiracism has evolved from a progressive ideology into a religion which tries to dismantle racist structures, but that made no progress because it is similar to the past racist arguments. Leftists went to solve homelessness, inequality, and crime, but have gotten worse in cities they control. The hidden narrative is that some people, by identity or experience are classified as victims and hence society must tolerate their destructive behaviors. But these experiments fail across metrics, wages, unemployment, income levels, test scores, incarceration rates, and health outcomes. Today’s anti-racist activists are not progressives because they fail to acknowledge the spirit of their culture and society which originates due to societal ignorance. Author John McWhorter says that the enlightened and self-appointed champions of anti-racism, whom he calls “the Elect” harm Black Americans. He identifies three waves of activism; the fight against slavery and legalized segregation, fighting racist attitudes by believing that it is a moral defect, and anti-racism is a religion! The Elect’s ideology of social justice is a grotesque form of moral exhibitionism. It is preoccupied with policing speech and regulating behavior. It is not progress or even compassion. For example, the largest American corporations have made massive spending commitments to support racial justice. Cable giant Comcast sponsors a program called Comcast RISE for minority-owned and women-owned businesses for free consulting, media, advertising, and technology assistance, along with up to $10,000 in grants. But businesses owned by white males are excluded. Amazon offers a program called the Black Business Accelerator, which offers cash, advertising credits, imaging services, and business coaching services. Similarly, Mastercard, and Microsoft operates programs for Black Americans that offers free services and grants for which White people are excluded, even though these programs are in direct violation of federal and state laws. Encouraging Black people to see themselves as perpetual victims, while assigning to White people the task of becoming enlightened enough to recognize their own racism creates a culture of bigotry. If Black students perform poorly on standardized tests, is it fair to assume that the test is racist, and must be modified so that Black students fair better? More Black students should be admitted to top schools using different standards to foster diversity, but it is racist to acknowledge that students are admitted for these reasons. For example, the acknowledgment of “White privilege” exhibited in some cases; when you see a YouTube Public Service Announcement, “I Take Responsibility” by pop singer Kesha; and Rosanna Arquette’s viral Twitter declaration, “I’m sorry I was born White and privileged,” looks like anti-racism in drag. How do we dismantle racists structures and embrace multiculturalism without culturally appropriating anything? For example, a tax break for capital gains is “racist,” since capital gains benefit Whites than Black people. But lowering interest rates may help all people to mortgage homes and get loans for businesses. But the same policy may push stock values which Whites may take advantage of than Black Americans. So, would it be racist to lower interest rates? Systemic racism is a valid term but dismantling racist structures or neutralize the Whiteness from White people is in the wrong direction. Because Black Americans don’t need their struggles validated by the sympathies of White people. The fact that progressive ideology in our time is the unwillingness to criticize bad ideas honestly for fear of being misconstrued as a bigot. The author makes a good case for dismantling the wokism and the associated racist structures, but being a Black man, he doesn’t distance himself from his “Blackness” in terms of offering better solutions to combat woke racism. There is such a thing as humanity and consciousness that by itself can judge its current society and understand the difference between being a Black person and a White. But they can not judge the actions of their ancestors who lived in 1922 America or 1822 America which was a different point in time, and they had a different social configuration. The universe is headed towards a non-equilibrium state, and this thermodynamic principle applies to life, economics, and human culture. So, creating an equitable society which is in equilibrium with all its characteristics may not be possible, but let humanity deal with this without the help from progressives, wokism or cancel culture.