Edited to confess I don't use it in the original context either. I use it like the article mentions near the end:
"People today who identify as woke see themselves as having been awakened to a new set of ideas, value systems, and knowledge”
I don't actually use it out loud (primarily because of what conservatives have done to the word), but yeah, once you start looking behind the curtain, it's hard to view it any other way but as an awakening.