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What is WOMXN? Michelle Obama slammed for 'wokeness' while voicing support for abortion care

The former First Lady, 58, employed the woke terminology while encouraging prospective voters to participate in the midterm primary elections

Michelle Obama raised eyebrows on Saturday, May 14, after she used the term "womxn" while voicing her support for abortion care in a post on Instagram.

The former First Lady, 58, employed the woke terminology while encouraging prospective voters to participate in the midterm primary elections, especially in conservative states where a potential Supreme Court overturn of Roe v. Wade could result in stringent abortion bans. "State lawmakers will have the power to strip womxn of the right to make decisions about their bodies and their healthcare," read one of the slides she shared. Progressive politicians have faced backlash in the past for using gender-inclusive terms, including when New York congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez used "menstruating persons" to refer to people who identify as women.

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What is 'womxn'?

According to the Daily Mail, the term "womxn" is intended to be inclusive of transgender and non-binary people who may identify as women. However, critics have argued that using the phrase alienates and ignores the experience of straight/cis women.

"It's been a tough couple of weeks since we saw the leaked SCOTUS draft opinion on abortion," Obama wrote in the caption of her post, where she used the traditional spelling of the word in question. "If it comes to pass, we may soon live in a country where millions of women — not to mention our children and grandchildren — lose the right to make decisions about their bodies and their health," she added. The slides appeared to be created by When We All Vote, a non-profit organization co-chaired by the former FLOTUS that drives voters to the ballots. Obama recently launched the VoteLoud HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) initiative "to empower HBCU students to take a leading role in voter registration, education, and mobilization efforts on their campuses."

The presentation shared on Instagram highlighted the importance of local elections after the SCOTUS draft was leaked. "If we knew the courts were heading toward this day, it doesn't make the frustration, grief, and fear any less real," Obama wrote. "But we don't have to stand idly by while others try to turn back the clock on progress. I'm so inspired by everyone out marching today. And I know that we're going to see so many folks carrying this energy forward to the elections in November and in every election after that."

However, the former First Lady was mocked by conservative figures for using the slides with "woke terminology."

"Democrats, don't expect the Obamas to save you from weird woke terminology," GOP pollster and strategist Patrick Ruffini tweeted.

"Just asking a practical question here, how does one pronounce 'womxn'?" former RNC spokesman Doug Heye added. 

"What the hell is a 'womxn'?" Blaze TV host Chad Prather asked.

"How am I supposed to know? I’m not a linguist," Texas Scorecard publisher M.Q. Sullivan quipped in response.

As mentioned, progressive leaders have previously faced pushback for not using the traditional term "woman." Ocasio-Cortez was mocked for using the phrase "menstruating persons" during a CNN interview while criticizing Texas Governor Greg Abbott as being ignorant of reproductive science. "I don't know if he is familiar with a menstruating person's body. In fact, I do know that he's not familiar with a woman - with a female or menstruating person's body," the congresswoman said. Democrat strategist James Carville told the outlet last week that his party's "woke obsessions" with "veganism and pronouns" had emboldened Republicans to end federal abortion protections.