A.F. Branco Cartoon – Sec. Hegseth has removed the woke nonsense from the military, moving to a merit-based structure, saying, “we’re done with that sh-t”.
Trump and Hegseth Military Meeting: Encouraging Strong Warrior Spirit, Rejecting Woke and DEI
By Antonio Graceffo – The Gateway Pundit – Oct 1, 2025
“From this moment forward, the only mission of the newly restored Department of War is this: warfighting, preparing for war and preparing to win, unrelenting and uncompromising in that pursuit not because we want war, no one here wants war, but it’s because we love peace…Our number one job, of course, is to be strong so that we can prevent war in the first place.” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth
On September 30, 2025, at Marine Corps Base Quantico, President Donald Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addressed hundreds of generals and flag officers, outlining a sweeping transformation of the U.S. military. The two leaders presented a united vision for restoring a warfighting culture built on merit, discipline, and strength.
President Trump told the assembled military leaders, “We’re bringing back a focus on fitness, ability, character, and strength, and that’s because the purpose of the… READ MORE
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country in various news outlets, including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, Elon Musk, and President Trump.
Charlie Kirk was murdered from 200 yards away, with the cold precision of someone lining up a target at a shooting range. He didn’t die in a back alley or some political war zone. He had security and died in the open, under the watch of a supposedly civilized society at a university.
If someone with security, visibility, and national prominence can be picked off from that distance, how hard do you think it would be to reach your average CEO at a shareholder meeting? How protected are your ideas from the activists you thought were just “passionate employees”?
Because the truth is, the woke don’t just disagree with you anymore. They dehumanize you. And dehumanization is always the last step before violence.
This is not hyperbole. The same culture that once argued for “inclusivity” now cheers public assassinations if the victim had the wrong political leanings.
When Kirk’s death hit the news, while millions mourned, thousands celebrated.
Educators, lawyers, even judges recorded themselves dancing on Kirk’s metaphorical grave. Imagine your general counsel popping champagne because a man was gunned down for speaking ideas, they found distasteful.
This is the America the Left built: a violent-crazed society where moral outrage has been weaponized and pointed inward.
Consider what this means for corporate culture.
The so-called “woke” revolution was sold to boardrooms as harmless HR fluff—diversity workshops, pride flags on Zoom backgrounds, and land acknowledgements before meetings. But beneath the rainbows and hashtags lurked something darker: a generation indoctrinated to see ideological opponents not as rivals but as evil. And evil as they define it, must be eradicated. This is what they have been taught.
It’s not just theory. For example, an Office Depot employee refused to print Kirk memorial posters, calling them “propaganda.” She was fired—but not before the damage was done.
How many more employees like her sit quietly in your company, their finger not on a print button this time, but maybe on something far worse?
Think of them as ideological IEDs. You never know where they’re buried or what will trigger them.
Some CEOs are still in denial. They think this can’t happen in their world.
They think politics and business are separate planets. That’s adorable. The healthcare executive executed in broad daylight likely never considered such an end to his life. His killer was celebrated on social media because he supposedly opposed gender ideology in children’s care.
You think the C-suite occupants in America are immune? One viral tweet labeling your CFO a “fascist” could put a bullseye on their back.
“Going postal” used to describe a workplace shooting born of personal despair. But today, the despair has been replaced by doctrine. The rage is ideological, sanctified by hashtags, and no badge or building badge can stop it.
This isn’t just about safety. It’s about survival—of business, of free thought, of any semblance of rational discourse.
Would you want a surgeon who checks your Facebook before deciding how carefully to operate? A judge who scrolls your LinkedIn before deciding your sentence? Because we already have doctors publicly praising Kirk’s assassin. We already have professors and teachers cheering the assassination.
This isn’t politics. It’s purification, the purge.
And once purification starts, it doesn’t end with Charlie Kirk. It ends when there’s nobody left to disagree with.
Here’s the bitter irony:
The Left promised that embracing “woke” would inoculate companies from harm. It was supposed to be a shield. But they were manufacturing the weapons all along. Corporations hired zealots and called it progress. They gave them DEI budgets, influence, and policies to enforce. They trained them to sniff out “wrongthink”, aka truth. What they didn’t do was ask what happens when they find it in you.
The truth is, wokeism is not just a moral threat. It’s a business threat. One act of “resistance” from a rogue employee can destroy billions in brand equity. Just ask Bud Light. One rogue manager’s crusade erased decades of brand loyalty in weeks. Now imagine that, but with bullets instead of boycotts.
Every executive in America should ask themselves these questions at least:
How protected are your ideas?
What’s the threshold for becoming a “legitimate target”in the eyes of the“woke”?
The assassination of Kirk didn’t expose the dirty underbelly of wokeism, it showed us its full face—cold, self-righteous, and jubilant at the sight of what it deems enemy blood.
Corporate America has a choice: purge the ideology now or wait to see which of your executives becomes the next headline.
If you think you’re safe because you stayed neutral, remember: Charlie Kirk didn’t die for picking a fight. He died for daring to merely ask that he be heard.
When a CEO can’t act on common sense and what’s best for his or her organization and instead caters to “woke”, that company is doomed.
Cracker Barrel Releases Desperate Damage Control Statement Addressing Outrage Over Branding Changes as Stock Continues to Free Fall
By Cassandra MacDonald – The Gateway Pundit – Aug 25, 2025
The statement, titled, “A Promise to Our Guests,” was posted to Facebook on Monday morning. The restaurant chain, long beloved for its traditional American charm, faced a storm of criticism after unveiling a modernized logo that ditched iconic elements like the barrel and the “Old Country Store” tagline. Fans, including President Donald Trump, slammed the change as a “woke” erasure of heritage, leading to a $94 million drop in stock value in just one day. The statement, issued on Monday, attempts to convince customers that the core of Cracker Barrel remains unchanged despite the…. READ MORE
The Cavalry is Coming: 1700 National Guardsmen from 19 States Mobilizing to Help President Trump Stop Illegal Migration and Crime – Here Is the Full List
By Cullen Linebarger – The Gateway Pundit – Aug 23, 2025
President Trump is about to get a boost from some friendly states as he doubles down on his efforts to halt illegal immigration and crime across America. Fox News reported on Friday that as many as 1700 national guardmen from 19 states are being mobilized to assist the Department of Homeland Security as part of the crackdown. This move will allow the U.S. military to provide a more direct role in supporting federal immigration enforcement. News of this comes as Trump has suggested he will seek to replicate his successful takeover of DC with other crime-ridden cities such as Chicago and… READ MORE
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country in various news outlets, including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, Elon Musk, and President Trump.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee has triggered a controversy after adopting the alternative spelling of “women” as permissible. Students will now be allowed to spell “women” as “womyn.” Parody and reality seem to have emerged given a past Babylon Bee skit (below).
The new 2024-2025 school year study lists include the feminist term “womyn” as an acceptable alternate spelling for “women.”
“womyn” however, has itself now been criticized as offensive. While some feminists wanted to de-masculinize the word and use either womyn or womxn, transgender advocates oppose the term because it is used by feminists who exclude transgender individuals. They also reject the alternative of “wombyn” as referring to a person with a womb as an alternative. That has led some, such as Jennie Kermode, chair of Trans Media Watch, to reject the term “womxn” in favor of “women” as now encompassing trans women.
A Scripps spokesperson pointed to the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary, which has now recognized the alternate spelling for “women.”
Shakespeare might respond, “Inanity, thy name is womyn.”
Babylon Bee, however, appears to have gotten here first:
A.F. Branco Cartoon—We now know that Biden hasn’t been mentally fit to run the country since he took office, so who has been running the country, and who is running it now? Obama? Kamala? Dr Jill? Hunter? The CIA? WHO?!
Majority of Americans Question Biden’s Mental Fitness – Who’s Running This Country?
By Joe Hoft – July 6, 2022
Old and senile Joe Biden has a difficult time saying mental fitness so it’s no surprise that most Americans question Biden’s mental fitness in a new poll. Back in December, Joe Biden had a difficult time saying “mental fitness”. This did not bode well for a guy who shows a lack of mental fitness daily in front of the whole world. At a recent speech, Biden ended by turning to his right and attempting to shake hands with someone who wasn’t there. His handlers know of his senility and often attempt to hide his mental fitness even if they have to dress up as the Easter Bunny to do so.
A.F. Branco Cartoon – The left has nothing to attack J.D. Vance with, so they send out a memo to their media to say he’s “weird,” as though their radial agenda of Late-Term Abortion, Trans Surgery for Kids, and Drag Queen story hour isn’t.
LIBERAL NARRATIVE FAIL: WSJ Poll Finds JD Vance is More Popular Than Kamala Harris
By Mike LaChance – July 29, 2024
Democrats and the media are in a mad dash to define Trump’s running mate JD Vance. For days now, they have been pushing a dumb narrative that Vance is ‘weird’ but it’s clearly not working. According to a new poll from the Wall Street Journal, Vance is more popular than Kamala Harris. Harris has never been popular as Biden’s VP, so why do Democrats think her likability would change just because she’s no running for president? Polling shows that Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (OH) is more popular than presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris, shattering the establishment media’s narrative.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country in various news outlets, including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Trump.
Google parent Alphabet (GOOG) lost more than $70 billion in market capitalization in a single trading day on fears that its artificial intelligence tool is programmed to be woke, the New York Post reports. The stock sank 4.4% to $138.75 Monday after Google paused its Gemini AI image creation tool because it was churning out historically and factually inaccurate images. These included a Black George Washington, female NHL players, Black Vikings, and an Asian Nazi. The chatbot furthermore refused to condemn pedophilia and said there was “no right or wrong answer” when asked whether Adolph Hitler or Elon Musk is worse.
The calamity could fuel public concerns that Google is “an unreliable source for AI,” wrote Melius Research analyst Ben Reitzes in a note to investors.
“We have been arguing that Search behavior is about to change — with new AI-infused features,” Reitzes wrote. “This ‘once in a generation’ change by itself creates opportunities for competitors — but even more if a meaningful portion of users grow concerned about Google’s hallucinations and bias.”
On the same day the stock took its massive plunge, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, one of the company’s top AI bosses, said Gemini would be offline for a few weeks while the issue is fixed. The AI image tool was not “working the way we intended,” Hassabis said at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
The U.S. Department of the Interior sent an internal bulletin to employees in September on “Supporting Gender Transition in the Federal Workplace.”
According to documents published on X by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project, the department sent out guidelines establishing “gender identity” as a protected class under its federal policy. “Gender identity,”according to the Interior Department, is defined as “an individual’s internal sense of being male, female, another gender, no gender, of multiple genders, or fluid in gender.”
“The document states ‘it is not DOI’s intent to be overly protective,’” the Oversight Project reported, “but then goes on to establish policies governing confidentiality and privacy, dress and appearance, names and pronouns, inclusive language, restrooms and related facilities, workplace assignments and duties, recordkeeping, sick and medical leave, and hiring process.”
“An employee’s transition should be treated with as much sensitivity and confidentiality as any other private or highly personal life experiences,” the department memo reads. “Transitioning employees often want as little publicity about their transition as possible.”
The bulletin also outlines codes for “dress and appearance,” encouraging employees to “evaluate, and consider eliminating, where appropriate, gender-specific dress and appearance rules.”
“Once an employee has informed management that they are transitioning, consistent with the employee’s wishes, DOI dress codes should be applied to employees transitioning to a different gender in the same way that they are applied to other employees of that gender, as appropriate,” the policy reads.
Employees with the National Park Service (NPS) apparently violated the agency dress code during an LGBT “pride” celebration this summer when staff held a parade at Yosemite National Park featuring celebrity environmentalist drag queen Pattie Gonia. While the NPS uniform code expressly prohibits employee participation in demonstrations or public events “wherein the wearing of the uniform could be construed as agency support for a particular issue, position, or political party,” staff draped their uniforms in activist apparel anyway.
In October, the drag queen was featured by the department again with a bizarre clip promoting the false narrative that “queer rights are more under attack than ever” alongside Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.
The transgender policy deployed by Interior leadership in September urges employees to “use gender-neutral language in broad communications to avoid assumptions about gender identity.” Examples of “pronouns,” according to the policy, are “they, them, theirs, ze/hir/hirs, ze/zir/zirs, xe/xem/xyrs.” Bathroom use is up to personal discretion, it says, and those who refuse to abide by departmental policies are warned of retribution for “unlawful discrimination.”
“Repeated, intentional refusal to use the employee’s affirming name/gender/pronouns, and/or repeated reference to the employee’s dead name/gender/pronouns by supervisors/managers, or coworkers is contrary to the goal of treating all employees with dignity and respect,” the policy states. “Such intentional conduct could constitute unlawful discrimination.”
Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist and the author of Social Justice Redux, a conservative newsletter on culture, health, and wellness. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com. Sign up for Tristan’s email newsletter here.
The Woke culture infecting our society today is the direct offspring of the Liberal Democrat party and the radical left. Woke has permeated our government institutions, Universities, and corporate America, Mainly because of the radical left that have become professors in higher learning, brainwashing students to believe it’s okay to mass-murder, rape, and torture innocent people in Israel and attack the Jews in America.
Although many Democrats try to separate themselves from the Wokesters, they are directly responsible for this Diversity-Equity-Inclusion that plants the seed for division and the balkanization of our country.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country in various news outlets, including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Trump.
FIRST ON FOX: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, R-Ark., is setting the record straight on femininity in Arkansas, introducing an executive order to mandate the use of gender-specific terms when describing women and “prohibit the use of woke, anti-women words for official state government business.”
“The science is clear and real; There are things only women can do, like perform the miracle of birth,” Sanders wrote in the executive order shared first with Fox News Digital. “Government should reject language that ignores, undermines, and erases women; Government should celebrate gender distinctions between men and women — not erase them.”
Sanders’ order comes as states, workplaces and schools around the country are pushing the use of what they refer to as “culturally conscious” or “inclusive” language — initiatives that commonly attempt to remove femininity from terms used to describe women.
In the spring, the Arkansas Department of Health issued a memo on drinking water that described how small per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) can have negative effects on “pregnant people.” Sanders’ new order will require the state to use the terms “pregnant women” or “pregnant mom” when describing someone who is expecting a child.
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. (Thomas Metthe/Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
The governor wrote that rather than refer to females as a “menstruating person” or “menstruating people,” to use the terms “woman” or “women.” Rather than “birthing person,” use “birth mom,” and rather than “chestfeeding,” use “breastfeeding.” And rather than “laboring person,” use “birth mom,” and “woman” instead of “birth-giver.”
Sanders has firmly stood on the side of opposition to removing femininity from terms referring to women. As the first woman to serve as Arkansas governor, Sanders has slammed President Biden as “the first man to surrender his presidency to a woke mob that can’t tell you what a woman is.”
I’m the first woman to lead my state. Biden is the first man to surrender his presidency to a woke mob that can’t tell you what a woman is.
Everyday we are told that we must partake in their rituals, salute their flags, and worship their false idols. It’s crazy, and it’s wrong.
Amid a nationwide trend to replace gender-specific terms, the city of Portland, Oregon, recently urged city staff members to adopt a more “culturally conscious” vocabulary that included not using words such as “women,” “Caucasian” or “citizen.”
An elementary school in Vermont was criticized for telling parents it would be removing “male” and “female” language from its fifth-grade science lessons covering the human body and reproduction, while a Missouri school district decided to use “they/them” pronouns in math class to help kids’ “mathematical identities.”
In several other cases, the “inclusive” push stretches beyond gender to removing religious terms from vocabulary and allowing biological men to compete in women’s sports.
Riley Gaines is a former championship swimmer who was forced to compete against a biological male. (Riley Gaines)
Michigan State University released an “inclusive” language guide for its students that suggested “in winter and spring, avoid references to majority religious imagery and language, such as the word ‘merry’ or ‘Christmas trees,’ ‘wreaths,’ ‘holly,’ ‘bells,’ ‘gifts,’ ‘reindeer,’ ‘bunnies,’ ‘eggs’ and ‘chicks,’” the style guide suggested. “Use terms like ‘wishing you a wonderful winter/spring break’ or ‘best wishes for the new year.’”
Sanders will introduce the executive order Thursday “banning a number of all sorts of ridiculous words from state government documents.”
“We are all here to say enough. Enough trying to erase women and girls. Enough denying our biological differences from men. Enough of the craziness taking over our country,” the governor is expected to say at the signing on Thursday afternoon.
“They’re using nonsense words to erase women and girls — and more importantly, to erase our voices and experiences. Today, we’re taking a stand against woke nonsense… It’s the Left that decided that ‘woman’ is a dirty word. It’s the Left that decided that we needed to toss out basic biology — and basic grammar along with it.”
Fox News’ Alexander Hall contributed to this report.
Aubrie Spady is a Freelance Production Assistant for Fox News Digital.
The theme of my career over the past year has been the transition of departing military service and reintegrating among the civilian populace. As I approached this season, I have heard one particular phrase frequently circulated among much of corporate communication: “Bring your authentic self to work.”
But more recently I have heard cautions for those of us in uniform to be anything but open as we return to the society from which we were drawn. I find this deeply concerning. The nation should beware of prioritizing deception as social currency.
Last summer I began attending the transition briefings required prior to separation from the service. At one particular event, a retired military man — now working for a large national company — warned us that it’s very important to keep a low social media profile because of perceptual risk from hiring managers. He told of unfriending his sister on Facebook because he didn’t want anyone from his workplace to associate them with each other. That moment got my attention.
If the sister posts deviant content, I would probably keep some distance in online spaces for the sake of my sanity. But what if the sister is merely someone who expresses facts that just happen to be inconvenient to the current sociopolitical moment? We have seen time and again that facts disputed by corporate media, social media companies, and government officials frequently turn out to be true.
The call to sacrificially appease the human resources syndicate renewed itself in another employment seminar I attended this year. Again, I encountered the caution through a LinkedIn discussion. I was warned that employers fear that an employee who expresses a thought on his or her own time might also express a thought in the workplace. Such thinking from clearly well-intentioned people seems backward to me, as if we should not encounter ideas and ways of thinking that might challenge our own.
People of faith-directed moral principles routinely encounter rhetoric that is contrary to their own beliefs and sometimes condescending. The reality is that many companies, corporations, and government institutions tolerate “politically correct” expressions in the workplace while shaming voices aligned with a traditional worldview. My time in the U.S. Army contains such instances, and I’m not alone.
This is in spite of protections offered by the U.S. Constitution, civil law, and military regulation. Culture and political sway always trump the rules. When you look at where people are being pressured, disciplined, or fired for sharing their beliefs at work, it is usually an incident of discrimination against speaking the truth by military commanders or civilian managers who have adopted a form of leftist social orthodoxy.
Part of the argument for why we should present as neutral in online spaces revolves around a belief that people cannot be taught how to engage productively on tough issues. Society has lost the ability to think, reason, and respectfully debate. Shall we then remove anything related to thinking skills from educational curriculum? The point of identifying a deficiency is so that it can be addressed. We should not accept a lack of skills in dialogue and thought as normal and then strike them from the list of disciplines to be pursued. Because one generation has not been taught something important does not mean people should abandon it entirely.
Rather than calling for an end to societal discourse, we should work to recapture the skill. I am not advocating that we bring cable news-style fights to the job site or that everyone abandons all expressive caution, manner, and restraint. But we must end the fear and spirals of silence that have become too frequent across workplaces, especially for workers who hold to a morality that was understood to be normal until 15 minutes ago.
By overusing a mantra that demands we avoid talking about religion or politics at the dinner table, we have robbed entire generations of the chance to develop the intellectual discipline that is foundational to reasoning and thought. These skills were expected of all citizens in the early republic. The nation’s current deficit in the tools of discourse paved the way for a cultural capture of the West at the hands of confessional Marxists. In their own words, such people aim to deconstruct and dismantle rather than defend and preserve.
Deliberately or unwittingly, those who argue in favor of self-neutrality demonstrate a worldview that places all power and personal allegiance in the hands of employers. Of course, there is wisdom in avoiding individuals who demonstrate a lack of restraint or courtesy in their manner of expression. But telling people that their employment is purchased with a lifestyle of silence is an elevation of employer to magistrate and priest. It turns employees into quieted servants and enables a soft social credit system that reduces human beings to machines. Such thinking is among the reasons my transition is focused on finding a mission rather than a corporate role.
The Greek general and politician Pericles is quoted as saying, “We do not say that a man who takes no interest in politics is a man who minds his own affairs; we say that he has no business here at all.” The problem is not so much that managers have an aversion to politics. It is that secularists generally have an aversion to ideas that contradict the prevailing winds of culture. They live convinced that policy advocacy on matters in alignment with their belief is not a matter of politics but of principle. The two, however, are inseparable. When one tells you to keep your principles to yourself, that itself is an ideological competitor’s political act of silencing you.
Beliefs turn into expressed ideas, which beget social doctrines. The First Amendment is of little meaning if we make it inferior to social demands of the moment. As a nation, we should beware of allowing momentary fears to become anchored going forward, and we should refuse to cede moral principles to satisfy the increasingly leftist human resources syndicate.
Chase Spears is a retiring U.S. Army officer, concluding a 20-year career in military public affairs. His opinions are his own and should not be construed to be those of the U.S. Army, Department of Defense, U.S. Government, or any other affiliated agencies.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Trump.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Trump
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Trump
By describing woke ideologies and their fruits at face value, conservatives felled the left’s self-conferred monopoly on how, when, and where the term could be used.
The Associated Press Stylebook, a once-respected linguistic guide for journalists, conceded the definition of the word “woke” to conservatives on Thursday, in an update instructing writers to “use quotes around the slang term.”
“Woke” was originally popularized by left-wing proponents of identity politics to flatteringly refer to their own “enlightenment or awakening about issues of racial and other forms of social justice,” as the AP explains. Conservatives have used it to describe those same people and their ideas.
Those ideas more often than not, demand revolutionary social changes that prejudge people based on their secondary physical characteristics. If, like the vast majority of America until about five seconds ago, you think such identarian prejudices are a bad thing, you might use the word “woke” in a less than fawning manner. Apparently, the AP’s staff can’t handle that.
AP’s concession of the word is hilariously thin-skinned, but it’s also a rare win for conservatives in the war of words. Just by describing woke behavior as such, we’ve held a bit of ground against the unhinged language police who are mad that the right is using their terminology against them. Unintentionally, it seems we’ve ended up with command of the word altogether, if left-wing outlets like the AP are henceforth refusing to use it.
While there are times individual ideologies require a more specific description — queer theory, or socialism, for example — “woke” is a completely fair and often helpful term to use when speaking generally about the coalition of people on the left who want to see meritocracy replaced by identity politics. As my colleague Samuel Mangold-Lenett noted recently in these pages, “what other slogany-sounding word really works as a catch-all for what leftism has become?”
“They lost complete control of the English language,” he added, “and the word they used to indicate their radicalism to one another is being used to expose that radicalism to the rest of the world.”
The apparatus of left-wing media outlets, cultural celebrities, and tech platforms that drives our modern discourse has a majority share in defining the language we use. From headlines to search engines to literal dictionaries, activists manipulate the tools of debate. In any debate, the first step is defining your terms — if your definitions are off, you’ve already lost.
That’s why it’s incumbent upon conservatives to be intentional, honest, and straightforward with the words we use. That includes defending the legitimacy of disfavored-but-accurate terms (like “woke,” or “woman”) and refusing to use inaccurate language.
Take the nonsense phrase “gender-affirming care,” for example. The diction dictators have effectively standardized the term, to the point where even people who disapprove of such procedures will glibly repeat it. But nothing about the phrase is tethered to reality.
The whole idea that people have “genders” beyond their natural sex is pseudo-science crafted to further an ideology. Procedures that attempt to inhibit or reverse the physical realities of a person’s sex are not “affirming” that sex, but actively rejecting it. And deformative surgeries that involve amputating healthy body parts and creating Frankenstein-esque “penises” and “vaginas” with scraps of carved-up skin are certainly not “care.”
To use the phrase “gender-affirming care” is to give up the entire argument before it’s even begun. Or, as George Orwell put it, such nonsense terms “construct your thoughts for you,” and “perform the important service of partially concealing your meaning even from yourself.”
The same goes for using improper pronouns to describe sexually confused people: calling a man “she” or a woman “he.” Doing so indulges a delusion. Having physical reality on your side does little good if you concede it away by the very words you use.
Concurrent with the effort to mainstream invented euphemisms such as “gender-affirming care” is an effort to cannibalize established English vocabulary. Other victims of the AP Stylebook’s recent crusades include “riot,” “mistress,” “crazy,” and “pro-life.” Proper grammar is also a victim, with the redefinition of the plural pronoun “they” to refer to individuals who are in denial of their natural sex.
Tech monopolies such as Google instruct their employees to avoid terms like “man hours” and “blacklist.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has nixed “criminal” and “foreigner.” From journalism to medicine, terms such as “mother” and “woman” are replaced by dehumanizing lingo like “birthing parent” and “person who menstruates.” Merriam-Webster has redefined “anti-vaxxer,” “sexual preference,” and “assault rifle” to further the editors’ ideological ends.
By describing woke ideologies and their fruits at face value, conservatives felled the left’s self-conferred monopoly on how, when, and where the term could be used. But the same people policing the word “woke” are appointing themselves the arbiters of the rest of the English language, too.
For those of us who prefer our words to reflect reality, there is nothing to be gained by good-naturedly going along with linguistic charades. On the other hand, there is the entire discourse to be lost.
“The worst thing one can do with words is to surrender them,” George Orwell wrote in his 1946 essay, “Politics and the English Language.” Orwell protested not just sloppy use of language, but intentional misuse of language for political purposes.
“Political language is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable,” he said. “Thus political language has to consist largely of euphemism, question-begging and sheer cloudy vagueness.”
Politicians and dishonest media propagandists today use inaccurate language to frame narratives and foster a leftist perspective. Inadvertently, even well-meaning audiences sometimes internalize this language and end up propagating the very ideas and framing they fundamentally reject. Don’t let that be you.
In every debate, it’s vital to start by defining your terms. If conservatives want to counter the radical left’s agenda, we have to begin by using words that accurately reflect what we mean — not words that actively mean the opposite. Here are just 10.
1. ‘Mainstream Media’
The public communication cartel headed by The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, CBS, and MSNBC does not represent mainstream Americans. Earlier this year, Axios (another culprit of heavy-handed political spin) reported that 56 percent of Americans believe “Journalists and reporters are purposely trying to mislead people by saying things they know are false or gross exaggerations.”
Big Media has engaged in deception through false and misleading “reporting” on Georgia’s election laws, the trespass and unrest at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and more. Embracing “Russiagate” and the allegations of the Steele dossier against President Trump was one indicator of crumbling credibility. The cover-up of the Hunter Biden laptop story just before the 2020 presidential election was another.
Even more recently, CBS’s “60 Minutes” invented a scandal about Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, while giving minuscule coverage to New York Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s cover-up of COVID-19 nursing home deaths his policies caused.
Leftist propaganda outlets who are running cover for Democrats and spreading inaccurate opposition research on conservatives don’t deserve to be called mainstream. Instead, use “Big Media,” “corporate media,” or — as DeSantis says — “smear merchants.”
2. ‘Gender,’ When You Mean ‘Sex’
Words have gender; people are one sex or another. For Latin and in many of the languages that have grown out of it, gender is a linguistic term indicating which word endings a term should possess. Gender is either feminine, masculine, or neuter. The phrase “la boulangerie,” for example, is French for “the bakery,” and its gender is feminine.
Male and female, on the other hand, refer to sex. Sex is a biological category that reflects a person’s physical characteristics and reproductive systems, and also manifests in certain broad behavioral differences that distinguish men and women.
3. ‘Sex-Reassignment Surgery’
Further, sex is not assigned, at birth or ever. If it is not “assigned,” it cannot be reassigned. Surgical procedures that remove or conceal the outward appearance of a woman or man’s reproductive organs, are most accurately described as genital mutilation or amputation.
4. ‘Democracy,’ When You Mean ‘Republic’
A democracy is direct rule by the supreme will of the people: the highest law is that of the loudest mob. Derived from the Greek “demos” (people) and “kratia” (power), democracy involves no higher law than popular consensus, and subjects the majority will to no checks and balances but itself.
In Book VIII of “The Republic,” Plato lists democracy as the social structure directly followed by tyranny. Democracy, Plato theorized, “comes into being when the poor, winning the victory, put to death some of the other party, drive out others, and grant the rest of the citizens an equal share in both citizenship and offices.” He continued, “that is the constitution of democracy alike whether it is established by force of arms or by terrorism.”
The American system was established as a constitutional republic. The highest law of the land is the U.S. Constitution, to which all public servants are (or should be) accountable. Additional laws are made by elected representatives of the people. Further, the American system is a federal republic, meaning power is divided between federal, state, and local governments, all of whom serve as the guarantors of the people’s sovereignty and rights.
5. ‘Abortion Doctors’ and ‘Abortion Clinics’
Doctors protect life; they don’t willfully take it. The Hippocratic Oath, written by the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates and long respected as a noble description of a doctor’s vocation, includes a commitment to “not give to a woman an abortive remedy.” Doctors are also obligated to, as far as it is in their power, “do no harm.” (This phrase is commonly attributed to the Hippocratic Oath, but actually comes from another work of Hippocrates, his book, “Of the Epidemics.”)
Similarly, clinics are medical facilities where people receive help and care. We do not call the room in which a prisoner on death row is executed a “clinic,” and neither should we use the term to describe the place where preborn babies are killed and dismembered. Call abortionists and abortion facilities what they are.
6. ‘Antidiscrimination’
Often, “antidiscrimination” policies actually refer to legal preferences based on sex, race, socioeconomic status, or some other category. The Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, for example, released an “Antiracist Agenda For Medicine” earlier this month that would provide “preferential care based on race” for black and Latino patients.
In another example of discrimination under the name of its opposite, Yale University unlawfully discriminated against white and Asian students, according to a two-year Department of Justice investigation. Instead of using the leftist buzzword “antidiscrimination” to describe these policies, call them legalized preferences, or simply the discrimination they are.
7. ‘Undocumented Immigrant’
“Undocumented” is the term used by people who don’t want to call breaking immigration laws “illegal.” However, most illegal immigrants have identification documents from their home governments. Further, 16 states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Washington — as well as Washington, D.C., issue drivers licenses to illegal aliens, giving them U.S. documents as well.
8. ‘Equity’ Or ‘Equality,’ When You Mean The Other
Equity and equality sound similar, but have widely different implications today. Noah Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines “equality” as “The same degree of dignity or claims; as the equality of men in the scale of being … an equality of rights.” The Declaration of Independence’s assertion that “all men are created equal” recognizes this equal value and dignity in personhood of each human being.
Equity has traditionally been a common legal term, referring to civil remedies; it can also mean the “impartial distribution of justice.” But in the jargon of identity politics, equity describes a policy that “recognizes that each person has different circumstances and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.” See the above entry for “antidiscrimination” for an example of how equity-driven policies usually work.
9. ‘Cisgender’
Cisgender is an unnecessary word and assumes that sex is a result of human choice. A cisgender man is a man; a cisgender woman is a woman. Only added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2015, “cisgender” was invented to represent the opposite of “transgender” in the 1990s.
10. ‘Pro-Choice’
“Pro-choice” is a euphemism to get around having to call yourself pro-abortion. But just as we don’t use “pro-choice” to describe supporting a person’s decision to murder another, we shouldn’t use it here. Abortion denies giving the unborn baby the choice to live; in that sense, it is violently anti-choice.
“This invasion of one’s mind by ready-made phrases,” Orwell continued, “can only be prevented if one is constantly on guard against them.” Sloppy, inaccurate phrases will “construct your thoughts for you,” he says, and “perform the important service of partially concealing your meaning even from yourself.”
Don’t let corrupt media and politicians design your words and supplant your meaning. To win the culture debate, you better first define your terms.
Elle Purnell is an assistant editor at The Federalist, and received her B.A. in government from Patrick Henry College with a minor in journalism. Follow her work on Twitter @_etreynolds.
PATRICK PLEUL / Contributor, Astrid Stawiarz / Stringer | Getty Images
Bill Maher is the Dr. Fauci of the “woke mind virus.”
For more than two decades, Maher’s HBO laboratory, “Real Time,” sponsored the gain-of-function research that led to the nationwide outbreak of the woke mindset and its primary variant, critical race theory.
While building a brand as the most virtuous, Barack Obama-supporting white liberal in America, Maher hosted panel discussions featuring all the properly credentialed racial, climate, and feminist scientists elite academia produced.
Maher’s lab thumbed its nose at the working class, preferring multimillionaire Michael Moore’s perspective on people living check to check. When Donald Trump rose to power speaking directly to and for the very people Maher and elites ignored, the liberal comedian told his audience to wear a MAGA-canceling mask and watch MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow and Chris Hayes as a vaccine and booster.
Maher created the religion of woke. It’s disconcerting watching him disavow and distance himself from the virus his lab leaked with countless batsh*t conversations.
This past Friday, Maher interviewed billionaire serial entrepreneur Elon Musk on “Real Time.” The gist of their exchange dealt with the now-obvious danger of the woke mind virus. Maher, the creator of it, has spent much of the last two years positioning himself as a woke whistleblower. He relentlessly attacks the woke without ever addressing his lab’s role in spreading the virus.
Maher’s Friday show highlighted a level of cognitive dissonance that is well beneath his intellect. It’s quite similar to the cognitive dissonance displayed by Fauci and others when they continue to promote Big Pharma’s experimental medical trials, aka vaccines.
Let me be clear. I like Bill Maher. I’ve watched his HBO show for years. I appreciate that he criticizes the woke. I’m just disappointed he won’t discuss the root cause of wokeness. Elon Musk gave Maher every opportunity to address the root cause when, at the behest of Maher, Musk defined the woke mind virus.
“I think we have to be very cautious about anything that is anti-meritocratic and anything that results in the suppression of free speech,” Musk said. “Those are two aspects of the woke mind virus that I think are very dangerous.”
Musk, the new owner of Twitter, explained that Americans must be vigilant in their protection of free speech, especially speech we do not like.
What is Donald Trump’s primary sin? Publicly stating things people find inappropriate or do not want to hear. Trump’s oral and written behavior justified banning him from all social media platforms. That’s a woke mindset. The woke desperately try to control what people think and say. They’re quicker to forgive violent criminal behavior than a thought crime.
Maher’s Trump derangement made him an ally and supporter of the enemies of the First Amendment.
A little later in the interview, Musk told a story about a friend’s high school daughter who knew next to nothing about the accomplishments of George Washington. All she knew about the first president was that he owned slaves.
“The amount of indoctrination that’s happening in schools and universities is far beyond what parents realize,” Musk complained. “I came to realize this somewhat late. The experience we had in high school and college is not the experience that kids today are having, and it hasn’t been for 10 years, maybe 20 years.”
Those same indoctrination tactics are played out across corporate media. Donald Trump has been reduced to his irreverent and inappropriate tweets. Like George Washington, Trump has been reduced to his bad behavior. There’s virtually no discussion of his policies and what they produced or intended to produce.
I like Trump because of his America First agenda, a pledge and a set of policies designed to bring manufacturing jobs back to America. My parents were check-to-check union factory workers. When I hear the slogan “Make America Great Again,” that’s what I think of and desire.
President Joe Biden – at least publicly – is relatively well behaved. He doesn’t say or tweet mean things. That’s nice. But I’m frustrated with what his policies and agenda produce.
Biden’s obsession with racial, gender, and sexual identity produces an attack on free speech and a merit-based work culture. Democrats are the leaders promoting censorship and limiting free speech. Democrats are the leaders naming vice presidents, press secretaries, supreme court justices, secretaries of transportation, and assistant secretaries of health based on race, sexual orientation, and gender ideology.
Kamala Harris, Karine Jean-Pierre, Kentanji Brown Jackson, Pete Buttigieg, and Rachel Levine didn’t earn their positions. They were installed to make a statement about how virtuous Biden and Democrats are.
It’s a level of narcissism that far exceeds Trump’s. The American agenda takes a back seat to Biden’s reputation and the Democratic Party brand.
The woke mind is narcissistic. It prioritizes itself above country. Maher can see it in Trump. Maher can’t see it in himself or apparently any leftist.
Maher should watch his Friday show. In his opening monologue, he cracked a joke about Joe Biden’s intention to run for president again in 2024.
“Elections are all about getting your base excited,” Maher said. “[Biden] made the announcement in drag, wearing a mask, and drinking a Bud Light.”
According to Maher, Biden’s base is drag queens, wimps afraid of COVID, and transgenders such as Dylan Mulvaney, the 26-year-old trans actor Biden and Bud Light have been promoting.
Biden’s agenda and policies are catering to his base. And you wonder why the MAGA movement won’t go away?
MAGA is the woke vaccine. Bill Maher and the rest of the elite establishment – Democrats and Republicans – are the real anti-vaxxers. They’re uniparty. They hate the working class or anyone willing to challenge their authority.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and Presiden
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and Presiden
When was the last time you were called racist? When was the last time you actually cared about being called racist? Odds are you get called it quite often and care (or should care) about being called it very little.
That’s because lobbing accusations of racial bigotry at anyone who gets in their way is second nature for the left. So when people stopped taking these accusations seriously — realizing it is simply impossible for everything to be racist — the left began decrying “white supremacy,” semantically invoking Nazism.
When accusations of racism failed to coerce enough action, the left moved on to a pejorative with far worse aesthetics while maintaining the same message. Accusing people and institutions of “racism” had lost its utility due to rhetorical inflation, and the era of “systemic white supremacy” had begun.
According to some, the conservative movement and the American right writ large are experiencing a similar ongoing dilemma with the word “woke.” Many suggest the word has come to mean nothing due to right-wing over-saturation, while others insist it has taken on a far more nefarious tone.
White liberals are the most woke group in America, but for the Reddit-tier race hustlers "woke" now means "the n-word." pic.twitter.com/fNCgTUYxl3
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) March 15, 2023
Nevertheless, the question remains: Why has the word “woke” become so problematic?
Bad Faith
On Tuesday, Bethany Mandel, co-author of “Stolen Youth: How Radicals Are Erasing Innocence and Indoctrinating a Generation,” appeared on The Hill’s “Rising” to discuss leftism’s role in damaging American families.
During the discussion, Briahna Joy Gray, co-host of the “Bad Faith” podcast, inquired if Mandel would “mind defining ‘woke,’ ’cause it’s come up a couple [of] times, and I just want to make sure we’re all on the same page.” What followed was a brief moment of self-consciousness in which the author stumbled over her words before offering a generally accepted definition of the term.
Despite this, the moment was clipped, and the author was lambasted as both a bigot and buffoon across the web.
The whole point of this exercise was to humiliate someone offering a coherent definition of woke-ism that was insufficiently deferential to the whims of leftist ideologues. However, this attempt was unsuccessful.
So, everybody's seen my viral brain fart from "Rising" this morning. I can see why it went viral, of course. For those who haven't, here it is: https://t.co/4rgFBy9SGB
Dragging Mandel through the digital public square did not result in the typical groveling struggle session that has come to be expected whenever people explain their opinions in public, but it did inspire many to inquire about the nature of the term “woke.”
The term started to increase in prevalence in the early-to-mid-2010s back when “Black Lives Matter” referred to a hashtag, not an organization, and when the hot-button social issue du jour was the legalization of homosexual marriage. Despite its original meaning, used in common parlance simply to refer to personal vigilance, “woke” quickly took on social and political meanings. Like how every other community uses specific language to signify in-group allegiance, “woke” was used to inculcate oneself among the broader cause of the burgeoning leftist cultural hegemony and, by extension, the Democrat Party.
But as the term became more and more associated with the party, it became less specifically connected with racial protest movements and more so a shibboleth for supporting the party platform — “stay woke,” the slogan went.
If we don't vote, we tell the world that the future of our communities and our country doesn't concern us. Exercise your right to vote TODAY to make sure your voice is heard. #OH11Votes#BeAVoterpic.twitter.com/BA0jracEa7
— Former Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (@RepMarciaFudge) November 6, 2018
It is undeniable that woke-ism and the people who get protective of the identifying label “woke” have an influential presence on the political and cultural left. There was even a short-lived Hulu series titled “Woke” that chronicled a previously apolitical black cartoonist’s journey through the intersectional landscape of identity politics. And in 2018, “Saturday Night Live” poked fun at the concept of corporate fashion brands using woke-ism to market schlock to well-intentioned hipsters.
Woke-ism came to define a movement so insurgent among the institutionalized powers of the left that even its vanguards like former President Barack Obama and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who undeniably had a role ushering it in, bemoaned its rancorous presence and how it distracts from the Democrat Party’s larger goals.
This was something the Democrats fully embraced until they could no longer fully control the semantics around it.
It’s a Good Bad Word
Woke-ism is simultaneously a persistent ideological framework and a general inclination — it depends on the person or institution in question at the time. But both rely upon a consistent smorgasbord of Marxian dialectics and ideological accouterment — gender theory, critical race theory, et al. — that seeks to usurp the ideals of the American founding and impose contemporary whims.
The word has become as commonplace among the current-day conservative movement as MAGA hats and “lock her up” chants were at 2016 Trump rallies. And this is, to be fair, totally warranted; what other slogany-sounding word really works as a catch-all for what leftism has become?
Sure, it would help if the right had a more tactical approach to diagnosing and labeling each and every radical change introduced to our society at breakneck speed, but that’s not how people work. The right can and should identify the unique threats of identitarian Marxism, managerialism, and contemporary Lysenkoism, but is labeling all of these things useful?
Using “woke” as a catch-all label for radical leftism is effective. That’s one of the major reasons why the left hates it. They lost complete control of the English language, and the word they used to indicate their radicalism to one another is being used to expose that radicalism to the rest of the world.
Woke-ism is an intentionally ambiguous framework that is meant to keep out interlopers and reward its advocates. Therefore, simply describing it as what it is, is anathema to those who wish for its intentions to remain ambiguous.
Simply saying “woke” works.
Samuel Mangold-Lenett is a staff editor at The Federalist. His writing has been featured in the Daily Wire, Townhall, The American Spectator, and other outlets. He is a 2022 Claremont Institute Publius Fellow. Follow him on Twitter @Mangold_Lenett.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Donald Trump.
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including NewsMax, Fox News, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Rep. Devin Nunes, Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Chris Salcedo, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and President Donald Trump.
On Monday, Twitter CEO Elon Musk vowed to defeat what he termed “the woke mind virus” a day after tweeting his pronouns were “prosecute/Fauci.”
“The woke mind virus is either defeated or nothing else matters,” Musk tweeted.
1. On the morning of January 8, President Donald Trump, with one remaining strike before being at risk of permanent suspension from Twitter, tweets twice.
Meanwhile, retired astronaut Scott Kelly, brother of Sen. Mark Kelly, attacked Musk for his offensive tweet.
“Elon, please don’t mock and promote hate toward already marginalized and at-risk-of-violence members of the #LGBTQ+ community. They are real people with real feelings. Furthermore, Dr Fauci is a dedicated public servant whose sole motivation was saving lives,” Kelly tweeted.
Musk responded:
“I strongly disagree. Forcing your pronouns upon others when they didn’t ask, and implicitly ostracizing those who don’t, is neither good nor kind to anyone.”
“As for Fauci, he lied to Congress and funded gain-of-function research that killed millions of people. Not awesome imo.”
The United States Air Force Academy on Thursday held a seminar promoting “transgender visibility and awareness in our Air Force.” The “discussion” session focused “on awareness for transgender communities in the military,” according to a copy of an invitation for the event obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Events of this nature are part of a wholesale push by the U.S. military to foster a more culturally inclusive environment. Critics say this type of training is part of a woke cultural agenda that is being mainstreamed by the Democratic Party’s far-left flank. The Army, for instance, mandates gender identity training and instructs its officers on the best time to offer subordinates gender-transition surgery. The seminar was held on the same day the Free Beacon reported on an Air Force Academy course teaching cadets to “use inclusive language” that avoids gender pronouns.
The “transgender visibility” workshop featured two Air Force Academy faculty members, Dr. Joseph Currin and Dr. Karin De Angelis. The speakers were slated to “speak on their personal expertise and answer questions from the audience.”
The first 40 cadets to attend the seminar received a free lunch.
A cadet listed as a point of contact for the event, did not answer a Free Beacon request for comment.
Students at a New York City public school, March 2022. (Getty Images)
A New York City public school encouraged students as young as 10 years old to keep a list of all the “microaggressions” they witnessed, both at school and in their own families, according to materials from the school’s curriculum reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon. The same students were also asked to list their gender identity—”cisgender,” “nonbinary,” or “trans”—as well as their sexual orientation on a graded worksheet.
The sixth-grade humanities curriculum from Lower Manhattan Community Middle School, where just 31 percent of students are white, required students to read Tiffany Jewell’s This Book Is Anti-Racist, one of only five books assigned for the 2021-2022 year. The book contains 20 lessons on “how to wake up, take action, and do the work”—including the work of confronting the police, which Jewell suggests white students can do without ending up “in jail or harmed.”
“If you are a Black, Brown, or Indigenous Person of the Global Majority, you will need to decide how each outcome could end for you,” Jewell writes in a chapter called “Choosing My Path.” “White people, this is not something you need to do because you are at the center of the system.”
From Tiffany Jewell’s ‘This Book Is Anti-Racist’
The book also asks students to surveil their friends and family for racist behavior. “Grab your notebook,” one “activity” instructs readers. “Look and listen for the microaggressions around you. Write them down and note your observations.” Another activity asks students how “folx” in their families “resisted” or “contributed to racism,” defined as the “systemic misuse and abuse of power by institutions.”
The curriculum, which went into effect August 2021, came as parents across New York City were mobilizing against critical race theory in public schools—and as education officials across the country were denying that there was any such thing.
“Critical race theory is not taught in elementary schools,” Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, asserted in July 2021. Parents “are bullying teachers and trying to stop us from teaching students accurate history.”
One month earlier, New York Regents chancellor Lester Young stated that critical race theory “is not our theory of action” and assured parents that “we are not preparing young people to be activists.”
Jewell’s book belies that assurance. “We will work together, in solidarity, to disrupt racism and become anti-racist accomplices,” the preface reads. “There are many moments to pause in this book so you can check in with yourself and grow into your activism.”
The curriculum could spell legal trouble for the school, which is already under investigation for separating seventh and eight-graders into racial affinity groups. That practice prompted a civil rights complaint in December from the watchdog group Parents Defending Education; on July 13, the Department of Education announced it would investigate the middle school over the complaint.
“It’s astonishing that administrators at Lower Manhattan Community seem determined to create a racially hostile educational environment on top of the civil rights investigation that was just opened,” said Nicole Neily, the president of Parents Defending Education. “Parents who were once proud of the school’s academic performance compared to other New York City public schools are now concerned—justifiably so—about the school’s increasing fixation on race.”
Those concerns come amid steep enrollment declines—and budget cuts—in New York City’s public schools. With enrollment down 8 percent since 2020, schools have lost $215 million in funding this year alone, forcing widespread layoffs and larger class sizes.
Divisive curricula like the one at Lower Manhattan Community School have exacerbated that exodus. One parent told the Free Beacon that their child would not be returning to the middle school this fall on account of an assignment that required sixth-graders to disclose their “social identities”—including their sexual orientation—on a worksheet. Though students did not have to “write something for every category,” instructors collected the worksheet for a grade.
Such lessons aren’t the product of a few school administrators run amok but reflect the race-conscious worldview of the New York City Department of Education. In June 2020, then-executive superintendent of Manhattan public schools Marisol Rosales hosted a panel on dismantling “systemic racism in our schools,” which held up Lower Manhattan Community School’s “mission statement on race” as a model for the entire school system.
“To undo the legacy of racism and oppression in this country that impacts our school community,” the mission statement reads, Lower Manhattan Community Schools works to instill “anti-racist beliefs and practices.”
The school’s sixth-grade humanities curriculum is a microcosm of what that education looks like in practice. Three of its five units concern “identity,” with Jewell’s book listed as a “key text” for unit one. The “social identities” worksheet was part of a broader lesson on “the dominant culture,” which consists of “people who are white, middle class, Christian and cisgender.”
Whoever does not fit into this “box,” Jewell writes, is “part of what’s called the ‘subordinate culture.’” Her description of that culture is exhaustive, albeit studded with solecisms: “Folx included in the ‘subordinate culture,’ include Black, Brown, indigenous People of Color of the Global Majority, queer, transgender, and nonbinary folx, and cisgender women, youth, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, atheist, and non-Christian folx, neurodiverse folx, folx living with disabilities, those living in poverty, and more.”
“The people who want to talk about racism all the time are the racists,” said Maud Maron, who served as an elected representative for parents in the district where Lower Manhattan Community School is located. “The people who suffer are the kids who get cheated out of a wholesome school experience and hours of learning that should be focused on academics instead of race indoctrination.”
Lower Manhattan Community School did not respond to a request for comment.
The focus on race extended to the seventh-grade social studies curriculum—ostensibly devoted to early American history—which used “anti-racist” guru Ibram X. Kendi’s Stamped from the Beginning as its main textbook, according to a syllabus for the 2021-2022 school year reviewed by the Free Beacon.
These curricula do not seem to have soothed racial tensions at Lower Manhattan Community School, which is 41 percent Asian, 15 percent Hispanic, and 7 percent black.
A group of parents and administrators in April began planning a “restorative justice circle” to address alleged incidents of racism that had taken place over the school year, according to emails reviewed by the Free Beacon. The incidents included a black student calling a South Asian student “Indian Boy,” an Asian student touching a black student’s hair, and a “rumor” that a white student “used the N-word.”
The school eventually canceled the circle after a parent objected that it would “violate students’ privacy” and “possibly put current students at risk”—and after parents started to litigate the incidents over email, replicating the racial catfighting that had consumed the classroom.
One parent questioned the wisdom of discussing the transgressions of Asian students at a time when anti-Asian hate crimes were on the rise. It didn’t go over well.
“African Americans have been facing race-based violence for 500 years in this country, and still face it every day,” another parent responded. “So, I’d ask you to please be sensitive to that fact during discussions and emails with our group.”
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A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into the cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including “Fox News”, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and shared by President Donald Trump.
As part of a social studies class, a New Jersey public middle school forced students to watch a video about a transgender man’s hormone treatment—all without notifying parents. The video, “Ten Years on Testosterone,” details the transition of LGBT activist Aydian Dowling through hormone injections. Teachers and administrators at Pearl R. Miller Middle School in Kinnelon, N.J., did not notify parents about the lesson, which included slideshows with definitions of different gender ideologies, beforehand.
“You can build up the courage to stand up for yourself in a way that this is what you want to do with your life,” Dowling says in the video after injecting testosterone.
Dowling later spoke at a school-wide assembly as part of the school’s “Stories of Adversity & Resilience Program,” about which administrators notified parents ahead of time, giving them the option to opt out their children. Concerned parents flocked to a school board meeting last Thursday, where board members admitted parents should have similarly been informed about the hormone therapy video.
“I felt as if I was blindsided,” Loren Malfitano, whose two sons were shown the video, told the Washington Free Beacon. “They’re learning about this ideology of gender before they even have classes on the actual biologizes of males and females.”
The school superintendent did not respond to a request for comment.
The tension over sex education in New Jersey is one of many examples across the country where concerned parents battle public schools over radical gender and sexuality curricula. Florida received national attention in March after the state legislature passed a bill that bans lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 classrooms.
New Jersey is set to enact updated health standards in September pushed by Democratic governor Phil Murphy that teach second-graders about genitalia, reproduction, and “gender expression.”Fifth-graders will be required to define masturbation and differentiate between sexual orientation and gender identity, and eighth-graders will have to define gender identity, gender expression, vaginal sex, oral sex, and anal sex. The governor-appointed New Jersey Board of Education adopted the standards in 2020.
Planned Parenthood praised the state’s plan, which the group noted aligns with the updated National Sex Education Standards. These national standards, which were written by three advocacy groups that rake in tens of millions of dollars from the CDC and liberal donors, suggest that elementary students should be taught about hormone blockers.
The Center for Garden State Families, a nonprofit that aims to fight back against progressive gender curricula in schools, first spread the news of the hormone treatment video shown to middle schoolers. Josh Aikens, a father of 6- and 2-year-old sons, has pushed back against radical sex education standards as a school board member in nearby Lafayette, N.J., saying parents nationwide need to be involved in what their children are learning.
“I don’t need them to learn about sex,” Aikens told the Free Beacon in regards to his children. “The communities should determine what is taught in schools because they’re paying the bills for it.”
“Marxism, Anarchism, and the Black Radical Tradition,” “Witchcraft and the Cultural Imagination,” “Trans-bodies in Horror Cinema,” “The Problem of Whiteness,” and “Transnational Queer Politics and Practices” are not course titles invented by “The Babylon Bee” to mock the state of America’s universities. Rather, they are real classes I came across this year while scrolling through the course listings for the University of Chicago’s winter quarter.
As a senior, I had flexibility in my schedule to take a class simply for the joy of learning, irrespective of whether it fulfilled a graduation requirement. This should have been an enjoyable experience. Instead, the process left me fearful of the close-minded young people being inculcated by my school and so many other academic institutions.
As a politically conservative student, I am accustomed to being in the classroom minority. To be clear, I was not looking for a course that would reinforce my conservative beliefs (even if I was, “conservative” classes simply do not exist). All I wanted was to take a class that was not explicitly partisan by its very title or course description. I desired to be in a class where I would actually learn,with the help of a fair and open-minded professor who is intellectually confident enough to include multiple perspectives in his assigned readings. Unfortunately, it was incredibly easy to find swaths of leftist courses but quite difficult to come across classes aimed at genuine intellectual exploration.
There is a reason explicitly leftist courses like “The Problem of Whiteness” are prevalent, but it is impossible to take “conservative” classes and hard to even find open-minded ones. In recent years, conservative or middle-of-the-road professors have been weeded out or forced into self-censorship by a rigid, punitive academic culture. If a professor does not agree with the majority of his colleagues or dares to depart from left-wing orthodoxy, he is threatened and punished by fellow educators and students (even in the STEM fields).
While it is demoralizing for conservative students to never have our views and ideas discussed, much less validated, we at least have the advantage of constantly being intellectually challenged. Sadly, I cannot say the same for my leftist peers, who can fill their entire course schedule with classes that reaffirm their preconceived worldviews.
Graduating after being virtually unchallenged for four years is not only a disservice to students; it’s dangerous for our country. A 2017 study by P. J. Henry and Jaime Napier showed that “education is related to greater ideological prejudice,” finding that the higher one’s education level, the stronger his political intolerance. This is the obvious byproduct of leftist thought saturating the academy—more time spent there necessarily fosters a one-sided sense of intellectual superiority. A more recent 2021 study done by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education found that 66 percent of students said they supported shouting down speakers. Shockingly, 23 percent of student respondents support using violence to stop a speaker. Both numbers have spiked since 2020.
By indoctrinating and coddling young people, American universities are breeding intolerance. We are already seeing the effects of this indoctrination. Young leftists have disavowed our founding documents and fathers, and they censor, fire, harass, and publicly slander anyone who dares think differently from them.
Consider that our federal bureaucracies, the chambers of Congress, and the boardrooms of America’s most powerful corporations have only received the first wave of woke young people. Subsequent waves will be even more intolerant. Thanks to their immersion in the left-wing academic monoculture, the next generation will undoubtedly cement the downfall of the American mind and limit frighteningly more liberty in their wake.
Evita Duffy is a senior contributor to The Federalist, co-founder of the Chicago Thinker, and a senior at the University of Chicago, where she studies American History. She loves the Midwest, lumberjack sports, writing, & her family. Follow her on Twitter at @evitaduffy_1 or contact her at evitapduffy@uchicago.eduEVITA DUFFYVISIT ON TWITTER@EVITADUFFY_1MORE ARTICLES
A Catholic student has filed a lawsuit against a New Hampshire school district, claiming he was punished for stating that there are only two genders in a debate with another student. The student, a freshman at Exeter High School identified in court documents as “M.P.,” was suspended from playing football for one game after saying there were only two genders. The school district contends that no rights were violated and the decision was made by coaches.
The lawsuit was filed in Rockingham Superior Court on Nov. 4, with the local school administrative unit, known as SAU 16, receiving a copy of the complaint last week. Cornerstone Action, a conservative group representing the student, argued in a statement on Monday that the punishment violated the student’s free speech rights. The group claims that a politically progressive student who is not trans-identified engaged the Catholic student in a debate over gender identity, in which M.P. argued that the only two genders are male and female. The progressive student allegedly turned over an exchange of text messages to Vice Principal Mary Dovholuk. The vice principal is accused of confronting M. P. with printed copies of the messages.
Of particular objection was the school district’s Gender Nonconforming Students policy enacted in 2016, which Cornerstone contends is used to coerce speech.
“In applying this policy, the defendants have not only punished a student for expressing an opinion, but seek to compel students to use ‘non-binary’ pronouns such as the singular pronoun ‘they,’” the lawsuit reads.
“M. P. did not harass or demean any student, but simply expressed his views on a contentious cultural issue. The key question before the court will be if Exeter’s Gender Nonconforming Students policy, nearly identical to the policy adopted by school districts across the state, can be used to suppress the free speech rights of students who hold dissenting views.”
In a statement shared with The Christian Post, SAU 16 Superintendent David Ryan said school officials “respect the right of coaches to make such decisions in a manner consistent with the standards for all student athletes.”
“While we cannot reveal all of the facts at this time, due to the pending litigation and involvement of a minor, it is our belief that once all of the facts are reviewed as part of the legal process, it will be clear that no rights were violated,” the superintendent stressed.
“SAU 16 remains committed to creating and sustaining a trusting, diverse, inclusive school community where all are welcomed, respected, valued and empowered.”
Ryan also defended the school district’s gender-nonconforming policies, saying that the measures “exist in order to meet the districts’ legal obligation under New Hampshire law to ensure that transgender students have equal access to educational opportunity and are protected from discrimination.”
“The policies do not mandate student discipline, but instead recommend corrective action for discrimination or harassment,” Ryan added.
“It is important to note that a coach’s decision is different from a suspension from school and that all student athletes are expected to serve as role models and to treat their fellow students with respect. SAU 16 is in full support of the measures taken by the coaching staff at Exeter High School.”
Donations/Tips accepted and appreciated – $1.00 – $5.00 – $25.00 – $50.00 – $100 – it all helps to fund this website and keep the cartoons coming. Also Venmo @AFBranco – THANK YOU!
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into the cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including “Fox News”, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and shared by President Donald Trump.
Donations/Tips accepted and appreciated – $1.00 – $5.00 – $25.00 – $50.00 – $100 – it all helps to fund this website and keep the cartoons coming. Also Venmo @AFBranco – THANK YOU!
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into the cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including “Fox News”, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and shared by President Donald Trump.
Donations/Tips accepted and appreciated – $1.00 – $5.00 – $25.00 – $50.00 – $100 – it all helps to fund this website and keep the cartoons coming. Also Venmo @AFBranco – THANK YOU!
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into the cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including “Fox News”, MSNBC, CBS, ABC, and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, Rush Limbaugh, and shared by President Donald Trump.
Recent weeks have seen a renewed focus of the conservative Christian movement on “woke capital.” Following corporate denouncements of the new Georgia voting law, many Christians and conservatives are looking for ways to resist the growing tide within corporate America of partisan activism. Amidst this controversy, a coalition of conservative and evangelical thought leaders opposed to corporate activism, has launched a new website: StopCorporateTyranny.org. It is dedicated to exposing left-wing activism with corporations and educating conservative Christians about how it can be opposed. The website is a hub for updates, information, and resources for normal investors who are troubled by the growing trend of explicit corporate activism. It includes articles highlighting recent examples of woke capital and will call attention to campaigns to push-back against corporate politics.
“Free speech is under attack like never before. Activists are weaponizing Big Tech and other corporations as an arm of cancel culture,” said Jeremy Tedesco, senior counsel and SVP of communications at the Alliance Defending Freedom. “While we continue to enjoy strong legal protections for free speech, our cultural institutions, our universities, and our corporations are rejecting free speech, and even punishing people for expressing their ideas. We face the very real risk of our societal norm of robust debate and dialogue being replaced with shaming, shunning, and silencing. Big Tech’s ongoing campaign of censorship against conservative and religious views is a prime example of this ominous threat to all Americans. Free speech is a cornerstone of a vibrant and prosperous nation. It’s essential for democracy, the search for truth, and as a check on governmental power and tyranny. Instead of virtue signaling to a woke mob that’s never appeased, corporations should take actions that build up a culture of free speech and religious freedom that will serve their customers, employees, and all Americans for generations to come.”
Within the conservative movement, there has been much discussion over the possibility of regulating big business to ensure ideological neutrality by law. Such a move is rife with potential complications, and even if those complications are resolved and some concrete policy proposal is found, it will likely be several years before the Republican Party is in a position to legislate on this issue.
But, while some wait for fairer political winds, progressive partisanship in American business is only increasing. The StopCorporateTyranny.org project is a mobilization of the conservative movement to fight back against corporate activism now, regardless of which party controls the White House.
This campaign comes at a time of increasing scrutiny over corporate activism. For many religious and conservative leaders, the recent attacks by corporate America on Georgia’s voting law have prompted a re-examination of what the political focus for their movement should be. Since the election of Donald Trump, big businesses – particularly tech giants – have become more openly partisan and politically involved. Richard Manning, President of Americans for Limited Government, said by email that “the attack on Georgia over their decision to require voter identification for voters by multi-national corporations is reminiscent to the attack on North Carolina led by Silicon Valley corporations when the state voted to keep men out of women’s restrooms.”
In the intervening years between North Carolina’s 2015 “bathroom bill” and today, corporate boardrooms have increasingly become a focal point for progressive politics. Despite the long-standing tradition of conservative support for corporations, corporate activism is now so widespread that many Republican officeholders are openly advocating punitive actions by government against some of the largest companies in America.
Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri recently announced his support for breaking up Amazon. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida declared his support for Amazon workers attempting to unionize, accusing the tech-giant of “waging a culture war against working-class values.” It is increasingly the view of many that the alliance between the political left and corporate America represents a serious threat to traditional values.
In the midst of this flashpoint, StopCorporateTyranny.org is an emerging resource for educating conservatives and Christians on how to push back against the politicization of big business – which does not rely on government action, as the makeup of the federal government does not determine whether shareholders, investors, and customers can rein in boardrooms. It is a grass-roots effort, headed by some of the leaders of the conservative Christian movement, designed to provide tools to ordinary Americans for resisting corporate activism. “Right now, nearly 400 large corporations are pushing Capitol Hill to enact the Equality Act. Working in concert with the far-left Human Rights Campaign, these major businesses are not only seeking to end women’s sports, but to end religious freedom. Full stop,” Justin Danhof, director of the Free Enterprise Project at the National Center for Public Policy Research, said by email. “Americans of faith must engage with these corporate oppressors and https://www.stopcorporatetyranny.org will provide you with the tools and resources to do just that. It’s time that big businesses heard from all ‘stakeholders’ not just those pushing leftist policies.”
A.F. Branco has taken his two greatest passions, (art and politics) and translated them into the cartoons that have been popular all over the country, in various news outlets including “Fox News”, MSNBC, CBS, ABC and “The Washington Post.” He has been recognized by such personalities as Dinesh D’Souza, James Woods, Sarah Palin, Larry Elder, Lars Larson, the great El Rushbo, and has had his toons tweeted by President Trump.
American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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