The anti-woke movement feels like the new New Atheism, not in its goals, but in its energy. That same rigid certainty, the same obsession with “calling out” rather than reaching out, the same smugness disguised as logic. What once cloaked itself in reason now wraps itself in mockery. It claims to champion free speech and common sense, but often drips with cruelty, apathy, and a strange pride in being cold and not caring.
It’s a rebellion that forgot what it’s rebelling against.
Instead of questioning power, it often becomes its weapon.
Instead of liberating minds, it polices empathy.
Both movements, New Atheism then, anti-woke now, started as reactions to real problems: religious dogma, or overreach in identity politics. But somewhere along the way, the reaction became its dogma.
It stopped listening.
It started sneering.
And now, like all rigid ideologies, it hurts the very people it claims to “save”, especially the vulnerable, the curious, and the ones still trying to understand where they fit in a loud, chaotic world.
The “Woke” ideology seems like a phase in humanity’s collective search for truth, a branch of speculative thought that often overlaps with conspiracy theories and fringe sciences, reaching for answers without solid grounding or verifiable proof. It’s a movement fueled more by the need to say “We’ve figured it out” than by a genuine, patient pursuit of truth.
But ironically, its opposition, the so-called anti-woke movement, is even more toxic. It doesn’t just lack clarity; it drains energy. Where one side may be naive or overreaching, the other is combative, dismissive, and often cruel. In trying to fight what they see as ideological extremes, they create new ones.
It’s cruel in a way that echoes how the New Atheist movement once approached religion, not with curiosity or respect, but with ridicule and superiority. It’s not a conversation; it’s a battle of egos, where both sides claim moral high ground while missing the deeper point entirely: that truth requires humility, and real progress requires humanity.
The anti-woke movement often carries the same energy as certain segments of the so-called “educated class”, those who believe their credentials or rationalism make them inherently superior. It’s not always about wisdom or clarity; sometimes it’s about control, mockery, and maintaining status.
Where the “woke” movement sometimes leans too far into abstract empathy and performative awareness, the anti-woke backlash feels like a retreat into intellectual arrogance, mocking anything emotional, intuitive, or unorthodox as if it’s beneath them.
It’s like watching two extremes fight for dominance:
- One side trying to “feel” their way to truth.
- The other trying to “debunk” their way to dominance.
But both can lose sight of humility, listening, and the lived experiences of people outside their bubble.
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