(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . UPDATED: This Election is About the Future - Just ask AOC [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-09-24 Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez turns out to have been inspired by Star Trek Voyager while growing up. This ad from her campaign turned up in my Facebook feed recently and I thought I’d share this screen cap here. The party of the convicted felon is determined to take us back to some mythical past that never was, a return to the Gilded Age of out-of-control wealth and political corruption, with women as second-class citizens, and vast upheavals in the country from immigration and technological disruption. The world of Star Trek offers a compelling alternative. Gene Roddenberry’s vision in the original series was of a future where poverty and war had been left behind, where beings of good will could seek to work out their differences through rational dialog, where the science might be fantastical at times — but the underlying assumption was that it was based on facts that could be learned and understood by people willing to put in the effort. The series addressed conflict, issues of race, of gender, of inequality, of what it means to be a thinking being in the universe and what that entails. Over time the Star Trek universe has become more nuanced — we have made some advances since the 1960’s — but it’s still basically about creating a future that is better, where progress is not only possible but necessary. In one episode of Star Trek the Next Generation, Captain Jean Luc Picard delivers an explanation to someone from the 20th century on how the future of human society is different from what they knew: “The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of humanity.” (Of course, Star Trek being what it is, they also gave us the Ferengi — who are all about acquisition.) Closeup of the bridge of U.S.S. Voyager The show ran from 1995 to 2001. The premise of Star Trek Voyager begins with the starship under the command of Captain Kathryn Janeway tasked with capturing a band of rebels in a region of space referred to as the Badlands. While so engaged, they are caught up in an unknown energy phenomenon that turns out to be an alien transport technology which whisks them a quarter of the way around the galaxy. Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway They find themselves (and the rebels) thousands of light years from home and the Federation. The alien who brought them there can’t send them back — and at the best warp speed they can manage it will take them decades to return home. Janeway finds herself captain of a ship that is all alone, cannot expect help from home or even contact it — and she has to integrate the rebels into her own crew while managing to keep Voyager operating with no star bases for support and supply, while dealing with assorted alien races and threats. Time and time again, it is Janeway’s leadership that keeps Voyager on course, both literally and figuratively. That a young girl should find Captain Janeway a role model and an inspiration is an even bigger phenomenon than people may realize. Several years ago I was fortunate enough to enjoy a voyage on Star Trek the Cruise. Among other things, the cruise features cast members from assorted Star Trek series who provide entertainment, talks, and other things, along with the experience of being on a cruise ship — filled with people celebrating living in a future. On the cruise I went on, one of the featured cast members was Nana Visitor, Major Kira Neyris from Deep Space Nine. At the time she was collecting material for a book project: Star Trek: Open a Channel: A Woman’s Trek. I got to sit in a session where women on the cruise were relating how what they saw in Star Trek changed their lives. The stories I heard that night were compelling. I recall one woman telling how she was inspired to become an engineer — despite friends and families telling her it was totally crazy. What these women saw gave them hope — even saved their lives in some cases — because they saw a vision of a world with possibilities that would not have occurred to them otherwise. From the blurb for the book: Nana Visitor, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Kira Nerys, explores how the series has portrayed and influenced women. Interviews—with the stars, writers, producers, and audience members from all walks of life, including a politician and an astronaut—highlight the struggles and triumphs of women both behind and in front of the camera throughout the sixty-year history of Star Trek, and how they have mirrored the experiences of women everywhere. The groundbreaking casting of Nichelle Nichols as Lt. Uhura in 1966 was a paradigm shift for women and people of color. Pioneering is no picnic, and she planned to leave the show until none other than the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. contextualized her appearance in people’s living rooms across America as a way for people of color to know they were indeed an important part of the future. Since then, each Star Trek show has both reflected the values of its time and imagined a future of equality. In her first book, Open a Channel: A Woman’s Trek, Nana Visitor sets out to discover both how Star Trek led the way for women, and how each show was trapped in its own era. AOC recognizes we have the chance to put a woman in the White House with a vision of a future we can all live in. It’s time to have the leadership we need if we are to have the future we want. Make it so! UPDATE: There’s an upcoming Zoom call with the womenofstartrek.com. ZOOM CALL: OCTOBER 3, 2024 5:00 PM PST | 8:00PM EST JOIN THE WOMEN OF STAR TREK TO HELP ELECT KAMALA HARRIS Beam up to an exciting Zoom event with the women of Star Trek in support of Kamala Harris's 2024 campaign! Join Jeri Ryan, Michelle Hurd, Kate Mulgrew, Gates McFadden, Nana Visitor, Terry Farrell, and more as they share why they're backing Kamala and how we can all make a difference. There’s a button at the link to register for the Zoom session. Thanks to Carmeninvermont for posting about this in comments. 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