Modern society has truly been divided in two. While some believe that modern ideology and woke culture in general are uplifting the minorities in the West, others have given it the term ‘the Great Awokening.’ It refers to the awareness of a well-off and educated left of the injustice of a system that has oppressed people of color and other minorities. However, they believe that this has led to the majority atoning for their guilt by giving away their platforms.

While it is hard to deny the real problems that minorities suffer, the modern era has taken things further, according to the conservatives, by accusing every other issue of having a racial undertone. This is a very sensitive issue on which Joe Rogan has recently provided his verdict. On the #2204 episode of the Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan was joined by popular YouTuber Matt Walsh. The two talked about the current politics in the country as well as what is truly dividing the left and the right.

One of the major issues they tried to tackle was that of race. According to Rogan, the majority of conservatives as well as the liberals are against the idea of racism. “The general population, whether you’re conservative or liberal, everybody kind of agrees that racism is a stupid thing. There’s amazing people of all ethnicities and colors, and you should judge people, like Martin Luther King said, by the content of their character. We all agree with that.”

However, he further added that labeling everything as racist is surely creating a deeper divide. According to Rogan, this overshadows the true issues of racism while making people more volatile towards the movement. He said, “It’s an insult to the people that are the victims of real racism. When you consider microaggressions or someone cutting in line in front of you to get ice cream as a victimization, there are people that are real victims of racism. Pretending that everything is racist just minimizes that, and in fact, probably makes more people racist.”

Terminologies such as “systemic racism” and “white privilege” often become a center of debate between the masses, with many agreeing or disagreeing with the existence of these claims. However, it is also hard to disagree with the fact that there are many minorities in need of upliftment. Rogan is not new to the conversation, though. He himself was a part of a major controversy that led to the UFC commentator issuing an apology.

Joe Rogan’s racism controversy

Back in 2022, a compilation video of Joe Rogan using the derogatory ‘N-word’ during the early days of his podcast went viral on the internet. The video gained major traction when Grammy winner India Arie shared it on her Instagram as she stated, “He shouldn’t even be uttering the word. Don’t even say it under any context. Don’t say it. That’s where I stand. I have always stood there.”

However, according to Rogan, he often used the slur when he was quoting other comedians such as Paul Mooney or Lenny Bruce. The other instances were when he was discussing the works of legendary director Quentin Tarantino. He further apologized for the use of the derogatory terms by uploading a video on his Instagram, as he revealed that he felt sick after watching the clip.

In the video, Rogan stated, “I do hope that this can be a teachable moment for anybody that doesn’t know how offensive that word can be coming out of a white person’s mouth.” He also called his act “shameful” before promising to be a lot more mindful about his choice of words. Well, two years in the future, and it seems like Rogan truly is a man of his word. What do you think?