My friend Britt texted this morning. She wanted to talk about my upcoming class titled “White Women Get Woke.” I knew what was on her mind as soon as I got her text… it had been on my mind too. In her brilliance and candor she asked frankly, “Lola, is your class going to produce a bunch of white women who feel at liberty to declare themselves as ‘woke?’” I chuckled with a heavy heart and said, “I hope not.”
Nine months ago I sat in stillness and heard the words “white folk get woke.” I knew it was guidance for me to explore how to address this struggle at a deeper level. I also believed that linguistically it presented challenges. “Woke” is not a term I use. I prefer phrases such as “being awake,” “waking up,” “being aware,” “being in a sleepy state,” which are more reflective of what I’ve been speaking to for years.
When I hear people use the term “woke,” I cringe. It strikes me as a glib attempt to utilize language cheaply without fully getting the implications, origins, or necessity of its use. When something stirred in me and confirmed “that’s the name of this conversation that you are to facilitate,” I cringed, again.
I sat with the guidance I received for months before moving on it. I interrogated the guidance. And still, the message I got was, “that’s it.” As Britt and I grappled with the complexities of this offering I started to feel scared. I began to question the intuitive hit I had trusted, and subtly started to doubt and shame myself for the title I had chosen (or rather, had chosen me).
And in that fear, there was also a gift. The conversation that “White Women Get Woke” demanded Britt and I have is a gift. This body of work is strengthened by that exact type of grappling and questioning. I trust that the provocative titling of this class demands a conversation about the ways white people benefit from the creativity, ingenuity and the struggle of black people—usually without giving any credit or acknowledgement of origin.
The intention of the conversation through “White Women Get Woke” is to accelerate the conversation around race in America. I have spent years untangling my anger and resentment around the absence of education and responsibility within the white community as it relates to developing one’s racial consciousness. I have come to understand that remaining trapped in my anger and resentment is only an attempt to absolve me of personal responsibility.
I am in an ongoing interrogation of my soul—unpacking the ways it has been hijacked and conditioned by racism and patriarchy. There is no “end” to this work, as there are infinite layers of awakening that we can each delve in to.
My present urgency to dig deep is motivated by the 2018 midterm elections. In 2016, fifty-two percent of white women voted for Donald Trump. Sixty-one percent of those white women do not have college degrees. I am a white woman without a college degree. White women just like me elected a man who unapologetically campaigned on a racist and misogynistic platform. And he won.
For me, the election was not a shock. I laid down my mythology of the ideals of America as an adolescent. For the past 30 years, I have not lived under the delusion of “liberty and justice for all.” And yet, I have not designed adequate systems within my business, organization, or community to dismantle the consciousness of white supremacy. The upcoming midterms offer a starting point—a measurable timeline to provoke a holy disruption within the souls of white women.
In 1955, a 14-year-old Chicago native named Emmett Till was killed in Money, Mississippi. He was accused of whistling at a white woman named Carolyn Bryant. Carolyn’s husband and brother-in-law kidnapped Emmett Till, beat him, shot him in the head, and then drowned his body. Carolyn’s tears and lies resulted in a young black child’s death. Carolyn’s husband and brother-in-law were tried for murder and acquitted. Four months later they admitted to the heinous crime, but were absolved of responsibility and protected by double jeopardy laws. More than fifty years later, in 2007, Carolyn Bryant admitted she had lied about Emmett Till whistling at her.
In 2018, an 8-year-old Oakland resident named Jordan Rogers was confronted by Alison Ettel, now known as Permit Patty. Alison Ettel called the police to report that Jordan Rogers, a young black girl, was selling water on the sidewalk without a permit. Today, in the heart of Oakland, the birthplace of the Black Panther Party, white women are still abusing their power and privilege.
White women have a long legacy of contributing to and perpetuating the violent and devastating implications of white supremacy. “White Women Get Woke” is one of the ways I feel called to cultivate awareness around our dangerous history and examine our current paradigms and narratives that threaten the lives of people of color and keep us all trapped.
“White Women Get Woke” never launched. Upon deeper reflection, Lola launched “Normal white people.” and has offered coursework to hundreds of white people across the country.
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