Being Woke

Uganda passed a law that will jail for life anyone arrested for homosexual activity. That is disturbing enough, but what is distressing are the MAGA Republicans in the United States who cheer this law.

"It's about time!"

"We should do that here!"

And other such comments.

Think about this. This is 2023, not 1923. Women have the right to vote finally. People of color have the same rights as whites. Non-Christians have the same rights as Christians. The Irish can now apply for jobs.

This is also 2023. Women are not equal to men under the Constitution. Mosques and Synagogues are bombed. Black churches and supermarkets are mass murder scenes. Women are not guaranteed the right to choose. Fascists run for president and are cheered. Books are being banned in Florida.

It is too easy to brush this off by claiming that these MAGA Republicans are just plain stupid. Many are educated. What about them?

This hate is nothing new. Those of you my age no doubt remember Republican Senator Joe McCarthy who claimed there were communists (gasp!) infiltrating America, including the federal government. Never mind that being a communist is perfectly legal. Joe McCarthy painted everyone with a big evil hate brush. McCarthy got people black listed from jobs. McCarthyism ruined lives. Because he didn't like communists, and he got MAGA-type Americans to follow him.

MAGA Republicans, and I'm including DeSantis supporters here, do not believe in diversity. They want to create laws that compel everyone to believe what they believe.

About a year ago, I first heard the word "woke" being used as a derogatory term on Fox News. More specifically "woke liberals". Being woke means to be socially aware, particularly as it pertains to race. Educated people know this. Woke was always a good thing. Fox was now making it an insult.

At the time, I thought it was pretty funny. Dumbasses. No doubt this idiocy will end quickly when the Fox fact checker gets ahold of it. But then the ignorant MAGA crowd picked up on "woke". Conservatives are proudly "anti-woke". DeSantis' campaign is centered around being anti-woke. "Florida is where woke goes to die", says DeSantis.

DeSantis has gone so far as to control what is taught in Florida schools and banning books that show the white race is a less than favorable light. Good books. Classic books.

But whether these books are appropriate for school children is not the issue. That is a question best left to educational professionals, not narcissistic politicians like DeSantis. He is micro-managing and that is never a good thing.

These are dangerous times we're now living in. Fascism is very much alive in DeSantis.