Colloquium: Dr. Sean Johnson Andrews - In the Wake of Woke

Thursday, April 10, 2025 4:30 AM to 6:00 PM EDT
Online Location

Just a quick note to warmly invite everyone to the final speaker in this year's Cultural Studies Colloquium series--coming next week! This time, we are thrilled to welcome Dr. Sean Johnson Andrews from Columbia College Chicago to the colloquium stage on Thursday, April 10 at 4:30pm (on Zoom). Dr. Andrews will give a talk entitled In the Wake of Woke: On the Spectre of Identity and/in the Current Conjuncture.

The reelection of Donald Trump and the GOP sweep of the legislative branch was made possible by a revanchist rejection of all things “woke.” Along with “DEI” and “Cancel Culture,” ”woke” has become an empty signifier that is now variously sutured to the myths commentators on the left, center, and far right tell to explain Harris’s loss, GOP gains, and Trump’s early administrative actions. This presentation draws on a longer work in progress, suggesting a theoretical framework that situates the demands of popular movements designated as “woke” as part of a broader push to rearticulate hegemonic safe space. It will look especially at both the advancement and necropolitical reaction to gender affirming care and other transgender rights.

Click here to register to attend.