#5: Chronic Wokeness

In the United States we often find ourselves confronted with the sins of our ancestors: racism, sexism, able-ism, classism. We could just begin the long-overdue project of cultural self-improvement, but the comfort in putting that project off has proven so tempting that for hundreds of years our parents, and their parents have done just that--put off a project that should have long ago been completed. It feels good to be woke, so we learn a few feminist terms and put an equality sticker on our laptop--problem solved, right? This is why generation after generation of US citizens continues to face the same tipping point when it comes to racism (and sexism, and genderism, and phobias, and religious privilege). 2020 is proving to be yet another in a long line of woke moments--historic events that cause everyone to acknowledge a problem, propose a solution, run the clock, and then pretend the issue was fixed when nothing ever actually changed. Its always been that way. It probably always will be. When did it begin? Why don't we just fix it? And why does it feel so good to just remain chronically woke even though hardly anything changes? Support the show