Six Problems Plaguing The Anti-Woke Front

For close to two years I have been involved at the forefront of the culture war through Newtown, the non-profit I launched in November 2020, to help free-thinking creators and consumers find each other.  Through my efforts, I have been able to meet and talk with countless people from all walks of life who are involved in the fight. Those at the forefront, pushing back against woke culture, an ideology that stereotypes people and denies them their culture and individuality, are still a small but growing community with many challenges.

From the many discussions I have been part of I can tell you with great confidence that woke ideology in the arts and entertainment is so deeply embedded it will take many decades to untangle the mess that has captured so many people and organizations. 

Throughout the last several years I have discovered a number of key issues.  There are six major issues, and until at least one of them is resolved the fight for culture will be an uphill battle. Before I jump in and describe those problems I must warn you that 1) this is strictly about culture and 2) this article is not meant to point fingers, but to act as a mirror, so that we can use our time and resources more effectively, and help us improve in areas that need it.

Problem #1 - Networking

There are three types of people in this fight; those with ideas, those with resources/capital, and those with platforms. Once in a blue moon, someone has two and a tiny few have all of them. What everyone has in common is the need to connect.  Networking is still the best tool at our disposal. But this is still severely underutilized. 

We now have cell phones, email, messaging and social media of all kinds, so why aren’t people connecting? It is now imperative to gather more people if we are to build a resistance to this ideology that already has momentum. 

The woke movement is fully coordinated and has been so for many years by harnessing social media, with Facebook groups, Discord servers, Zoom meetings, and more. Last year, I stumbled across a Clubhouse room with more than 100 hundred people. The theme was “Sustainability in the Arts” (the woke kind), and for more than an hour, I listened to the host, a venture capitalist, as he gave the mic to entry-level and seasoned creators alike. Ideas were flying and it didn’t take long for some participants to connect with others live, as it happened.

You see, the woke aren’t talking about changing culture, their march through the institutions is over.  They now control the message, the polity, and seemingly have unlimited resources to continue putting forward their prejudiced, power-driven ideology. If there is to be a counter to their activism we must match them with the same deliberate, sustained effort. They are organized so we must follow suit by networking and connecting those with resources to those who have the energy and skills to push forward better ideas and cultural messages that do not promote hatred and exclusion.  Rekindle relationships, renew connections, test the waters and see what the temperatures might be. A simple email will suffice, and it takes a minute of your time. Develop that muscle, and cultivate the contacts you already have, and help those working to oppose the identity ideology of woke activism.

Problem #2 - Commitment

Of course, we are all busy people and the vast majority with skin in the game are not independently wealthy.  Most have jobs, families, and their own personal struggles.  Their primary fuel is their passion to continue, despite the odds.

If we are to gain ground in this fight, and that is what it is-a fight over ideology.  A fight over how this generation and the next will view the world and interact with one another.  If we are to have any chance, we cannot do things in half-measures.  We ask each other to commit to this effort, and we must be willing to respect each other’s contributions, and follow-through with our commitments to one another.

Problem #3 - Conservatives

I recently watched a podcast hosted by a conservative from the think tank circuit. He was proposing fellow conservatives let go of the old guard, the boomers who’ve been in power for a long time, and who don’t seem to grasp the moment. In other words, shedding the boomer mentality; one that keeps people blind and stuck in their ways, oblivious to the moment, and the terrible impact of doing nothing.

In a previous article, I presented an overview (which is by no means exhaustive), of the capital at the woke’s disposal. For instance, in America alone, private foundations provide more than $80B in grants and funding towards local and regional artists, and they are all woke. 

Imagine me standing on stage at NatCon, telling the audience they need to give $80B a year to artists and cultural groups, without any expectations. I would not be taken seriously, and yet, that is what’s required.  As long as the other side does it, if there isn't an equal effort on our part, our culture will always lean progressive.

Given the near complete takeover of all cultural institutions here and abroad, we live in a time that requires leaps of faith if we are to have a culture that reflects our values, ideals and principles. For someone like the podcast host, he is bold, but there is a world of difference between a conservative who believes he’s bold, and heterodox creators and entrepreneurs who are 

BOLD.  

If we are to create a parallel culture, why should we use the same model found in the current structure? This is an opportunity to fundamentally revitalize the art and cultural ecosystem by freeing artists, and their benefactors from bad faith deals, sketchy accounting practices, predatory copyrights laws and more. If we are to create our own culture then let’s be bold and get rid of the parts which only favor top execs, and bring in transparency, accountability, and merit.

Take for instance Creado, a new streaming platform for all types of culture currently in development. At the core of their business model are three features; artists keep full rights, they get to sell their work at the price they want, and according to their own terms and conditions. This flips the system upside down so it is quite bold.

Their business plan is sound, their growth almost limitless, the team is made up of industry veterans, and their valuation is through the roof. They’ve been meeting with top-level conservatives for the last 18 months, and their pitches have been falling on deaf ears. It seems that many conservatives still don’t get it…yet. 

The podcast host also said we live in a unique moment. Yes, grants are massively required, but the possibilities for investments and profits are utterly astounding. You and I, and hundreds of millions of non-woke consumers out there are tired of woke messaging turning every film, television show, and even TV commercial into woke propaganda.  We just want to enjoy being entertained and are ready to consume all that comes out of the gate. 

See here; on Friday, November the 25th, Elon Musk tweeted the following:

The same tweet on Monday the 29th.

Likes, replies, and retweets have grown, if not doubled, within that short period of time. There is a large part of the masses that agree, while the audience is out there, twirling their thumbs and waiting.

Conservatives need to step out of the traditional ways of doing things to some degree and embrace culture in a different manner, one based on boldness and risk. Until they do, values, ideals, and principles they/we hold dear will continue to fade as their propagation through culture gets smaller and smaller, year in and year out. The woke are out there creating alliances, new organizations, companies, platforms, networks and channels to promote their ideology, to sell it to consumers as the only truth, and only culture. The true risk is letting them own everything, letting them be the only option, the only message out there.

Problem #4 - Grift

Another problem common within movements and counter-movements alike is that grifters are already sapping the energy and resources away by offering false opportunities to those motivated to stand against woke ideology. A few weeks ago I was offered to join a private club to access a private channel filled with heterodox artists. The price for that access? $800CDN/year.  While the woke have taken complete hold of our cultural industries and institutions, someone’s brilliant idea of contributing to this fight is to create a club and charge a fee so people can find each other.  Are you kidding me?

On YouTube recently, a clip from Ben Shapiro popped up.  This clip was not about current affairs, but part of a reaction to the new Amazon Lord of the Rings series: “The Rings of Power”.  Shapiro can talk about whatever he wants, but this is getting too close to cult of personality for me.  And he continues his streak as he gladly took on Glass Onion. Is he really the best we’ve got to put forward as a culture hero?  The Daily Wire is now creating and producing non-woke cultural content and bravo for that, but intentions always matter. 

The Daily Wire clearly has passed the point of no return where they asked themselves what's driving them forward; the commitment to defeat the woke or just prolong it as they drown in dough?  Ironically, while Shapiro blasts Amazon's show, the Daily Wire uses Amazon’s cloud service for their business. It seems that what's good for anti-woke Daily Wire is good for woke Amazon. So, while they are making a great show out of fighting woke culture, they are still contributing to woke capital. 

The solution is simply to say no, and not encourage it one bit. As for donors and philanthropists, make sure to do solid diligence on the background of the team you are interested in to ensure they aren’t hobbling themselves in the long run, by making their efforts dependent on resources controlled by their ideological adversaries.

Problem #5 - Media

By media, I include traditional outlets, as well as podcasters, bloggers, and vloggers. I get it, you comment and that's your main purpose but if that's all you do, you are not really helping. In some cases your negativity just discourages others or makes it seem as though no one is engaged trying to push back against the prejudices and hate of woke ideology. Not long ago, a blogger with a 100K+ Twitter following made a long thread on woke culture; wrapping up by asking where the non-woke artists were at.

Someone I know replied: “I'm right here man.”

This to me perfectly encapsulates the problem with our media and pundits, who focus almost entirely on criticizing woke activism and its ideological culture, while ignoring those creatively engaged directly in the culture war. We are right here, tens of thousands of us, working to create stories and content and wanting to create more. All we need is a bit of exposure and the consumers will learn about us, consume our work, and this will start a chain reaction.

If they even care at all about culture and where it’s headed, what’s stopping them from reserving a small portion of their time for interviews or introductions to artists they might have an affinity with? Given how minuscule the coverage is for heterodox artists and the hunger for non-woke art by millions of consumers, some meaningful coverage can have a tremendous impact on an artist’s life and work. 

Take for instance Megyn Kelly. Last summer she fell in love with the photos and poetry of Joseph Massey. She did a small segment on him on her show, followed by the real interview a few days later. This took Megyn less than an hour of her time and the result was staggering; Joseph’s Twitter following skyrocketed and the sale of his new book of poetry climbed to the second spot on Amazon. This almost insignificant coverage transformed Joseph’s life and he has been able to build a network of patrons and supporters, and can carry on writing.  Imagine if Megyn’s effort were multiplied. How many lives would be transformed? How much culture would come out of it?

Nobody is asking for nationwide ad campaigns, and giant billboards all over town.  A phone call, email or text introduction to those who might be able to help can make a world of difference. Grab this opportunity, take a dive, and make a real difference.

Problem #6 - Intellectuals

This goes to intellectuals in think tanks as well as authors and journalists. How many books on woke do we need? 80% of the population is the mass that follows the other 20%, which is now split in two parts, one woke and one not. That leaves us with 10% to convince. How much of that 10% is red-pilled? So books on the topic only preach to the choir now.  I’d say it is high time to stop writing and dedicate more time and resources to fighting on the ground, where it matters. You are free to write as many books as you want, but I feel you have red-pilled as many people as you can and it is diminishing returns onwards.  Let Rogan, Peterson and others deal with the masses. Their reach is far bigger, and they are very good at it.

The same goes double for writers who come out every six months with an article claiming we have reached “peak woke”. If you do it every six months it clearly means we haven’t, so as far as I am concerned not only are you milking it but you also contribute to inertia as reading your words puts people to sleep because it will be over “soon”.

Keep the pressure on, keep criticizing woke / intersectional activist ideology, because it truly is bad stuff.  Help enable others who are pushing back against the ideology in different ways, offering alternatives to woke cultural hegemony.  Just like problem #5, maybe spend a portion of your time introducing artists, connecting them to your network, and make a real effort to spread heterodox culture.

Conclusion

The sad thing about art and entertainment is it can yield short term wins while we prepare the bigger pieces of culture. A film or TV series takes years to put together but songwriters, novelists, painters, and the stage can all produce culture that can be available quickly and have an impact on the cause. Small victories perhaps, but they add up.

At this point, the only thing that stands in our way is ourselves. If you truly care for culture, and don’t want the woke to completely take over everything, then pick one of the above problems that you think you can improve upon and start improving it. Every effort might seem like a tiny raindrop, but together we can create our own tidal wave of change. So, reach out to people you know, look for those who need help, who can change the message, turn the dial, and become a harbinger of change to ensure a better future for everyone.