The word “woke” is only the latest iteration of reactionary rhetoric critical of liberals. Before it was ‘woke’ it was ‘politically correct’ and before that ‘bleeding heart’. Conservatives love to recycle, at least when it comes to ideas.

The jab is basically this: Liberals don’t really care about the marginalized. They just pretend to in order to feel better about themselves; signal their superiority; and bring those groups into their political sphere (then do nothing to help them). And the reason this criticism has stuck around so long is because it’s apt. When conservatives and liberals argue over these issues, too often, the marginalized are not on one of the teams; they’re the ball.

The liberal sees the condition of the marginalized; they feel guilty. And that guilt is the thing they really want to remedy. A progressive looking at the same situation feels anger.