Image: SFGate

We are a woke generation. We know “What’s up”. Full of spunk and sass and in the loop happenings around us. A set of people who are never bereft of information because we are fortunate to be in our prime during this time of a digital revolution. Our smartphones and other devices are our fast companions and we pride ourselves in being a driven, forward-thinking generation who are vastly different from the older, slower generation. However, the trend of events and recent dynamic in the way we perceive developments, interpret happenings and most critically, behave, is gradually becoming a source for concern; and this development can be tied to the growing belief that nothing is really wrong. The lines between good and bad are blurring daily, and we have “wokeness” to blame for that.

I was scrolling through Twitter when I saw a tweet by a lady who claimed to have been seeing a married man whom she eventually wanted for herself. Plan in mind, she sent flowers to his wife and attached a picture that told the story of the illicit affair. A divorce ensued as a result of the revelation and she continued to pursue the man without any scruples until he had his fill and dumped her.

Now, what I found really baffling was the absence of remorse about what she had done. In relating her story, there was not a tinge of guilt, not a scintilla of regret for breaking someone’s home. Instead, she had a retort for every response that attempted to point her to the terrible nature of what she did. It was shocking and I couldn’t help but wonder what would make an individual so inure to shame, so immune to the very things whose thoughts alone should make them shudder in awe.

These days, the mantra is “don’t judge”. You have no right to. Everyone has a skeleton in their closet and no one should try to insinuate that another is the devil’s spawn simply because they did that goes against the norm or perceived standard of behaviour. It’s the same logic we apply to every wrongdoing that should earn far more than a slap on the wrist.

So a man steals his neighbour’s property and sells it off to pay his own bills, rather than condemn the act and possibly push for the perpetrator to be prosecuted, we rationalise his actions with sentimental talks of the poverty that pushed him into the ignoble act. Our young men are embracing internet fraud and money rituals; sending entire families into bankruptcy, but we defend them with the “Nigeria is not providing jobs for the youths” cliche, as if that waters down the severity of what they have done.

To be “woke” is to be enlightened. An awareness of trends relating to fashion, slangs, technology, entertainment and virtually every aspect of life and living. These days, however, we have redefined the concept to mean anything goes. The conviction that we can do anything we feel without a care as to whose Ox is gored or how it affects our neighbour. Our street-smart, savvy persona is marinated in selfishness and self-centeredness. An epitome of entitlement and emotional unintelligence.

Woke teenagers and young adults get high on Loud, Codeine and Tramadol. Woke wives take advantage of all the misconceptions about feminism to foment trouble on the home front. Woke husbands hang with their guys at ungodly hours to the detriment of quality time with their family. Woke parents sexualise their daughters by dressing them in skimpy outfits and encouraging their provocative dance to raunchy music.

This woke generation of young people believe the older generation is a spent force who have nothing to offer them by way of advice. We think we know better, we believe we can do better we are smarter and more knowledgeable even though the young people who have found themselves in leadership positions, for instance, haven’t exactly shown that they are different from the old order we often castigate.

It’s time to revisit this kind of wokeness that has made us jettison everything that used to define us as a people who held certain values dear. For instance, the notion that while people should not be respected simply because they are older is a product of woke thinking. Now, don’t get me wrong, I believe people should be accorded respect more because of how they carry and conduct themselves, however, it doesn’t negate the fact that the elderly should be shown an appreciable measure of reverence. Age speaks to experience (and to some degree wisdom), and except they somehow prove they are unworthy of such elevation, they deserve to be acknowledged for being ahead in the journey of life.

Time was when sexual crimes like rape, all forms of molestation and paedophilia were collectively condemned. But what do we have these days? A people who are ready to offer some inane explanation for every horrific deed. Who would have thought there would come a time when people would champion the cause of paedophiles? But it’s happening right before our very eyes! Child molesters who should probably spend the rest of life behind bars may get some reprieve because some people believe they can’t help that they are attracted to children.

If we aren’t careful, we will begin to excuse murderers and kidnappers and cultists and serial killers soon. After all, science can always find some kind of cop-out for every behaviour.

It’s the inevitable aftermath of neglecting the acceptable standard of behaviour and like every other aberration, an unsavoury outcome looms.