wokewashing en · NOUN
Etymology
From woke + -wash + -ing. Compare greenwashing.
Meanings
-
(derogatory, uncountable) The use of social justice in marketing campaigns.
Which means modern brands have started using progressive values as a marketing ploy and are appropriating social activism as a form of advertising. It’s like the “greenwashing” of yore, but on a whole other level. We have, I’m afraid, entered a nauseating new age of woke-washing.
2018 August 10, Arwa Mahdawi, “Woke-washing brands cash in on social justice. It’s lazy and hypocritical”, in The Guardian:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| woke-washing | alternative | lexicographic |