Star Trek It's a much-talked-about franchise that's part and parcel of our collective pop culture, and even non-fans are prone to saying things like "Dead, Jim" or "I'm pissed." However, one veteran Trek writer thinks an overlooked dialogue in a largely forgotten episode could be one of the franchise's greatest moments. According to novelist JM Dillard, a quick conversation between Commander Sisko and Dr. Deep space nine The show "Abandoned" made TV history in the 90s by subverting the typical racist images on screen.
The conversation
The story begins when Bashir visits Syscon's office and starts escorting foreign ambassadors around the station who are annoyed by the doctor's actions. in Star Trek - where no one has gone before"There's nothing unusual about this conversation," Dillard said, because "it's the kind of thing that happens every day in offices around the world." However, the difference is that when a black person talks to a Middle Eastern person on a typical television drama, they are almost always talking about drugs, crime, terrorism or violence - and they can be presented as less educated. Very conspicuous, immoral or anti-social – but never on Star Trek.
For young fans born later Deep space nine Turns out, Dillard's claim may seem a little harsh, but it's worth remembering that this show has been intentionally focused on racial issues from the beginning. Avery Brooks Cisco was the first black lead in a Trek show and remained the only one until the premiere. Discovery. Later DS9 episodes directly address race and racism, including "Far Beyond the Stars", an episode that suggests the entire episode may have been Benny Russell's creation. Sci-fi Writer (and very ugly) racism in 1953 America
Such a myth may seem on the nose now, but in 2010 Deep space nine Writers felt it was important because Dillard was right: in the 80s and 90s, too many black characters were portrayed as dangerous thugs rather than righteous heroes. For example, Brooks is sympathetic in his role Spenser for rentBut Hawke's character was still an unscrupulous hitman who seemed written more as a racist than a character.
Whether or not Hawke was a character in drag is certainly up for debate, but as Brooks himself later put it, his portrayal led many white fans to assume he was actually a gun-toting man the producers hired off the "street corner." Some of those same fans talk to me in a vernacular called, what, black talk? He said. Hollywood wasn't much better than these fans: DS9 was a star in its infancy. The biggest successa big-budget movie featuring (what else?) a ruthless mob boss.
From the beginning, Deep space nine Race focused on human characteristics and his Foreign citizens. For example, the story of the Cardassians using Bajorans as slave labor on the official space station clearly evokes America's troubling racial history. And Brooks was never afraid to step in and tell his writers when he thought they were suddenly feeding into racial stereotypes. This is most evident in the series finale: Brooks insists that Cisco tell his pregnant wife, Kasidy Yates, that he will return one day because he is uncomfortable with the story of a black man leaving his wife and raising their child alone.
According to Dillard, however, real magic Deep space nine It may talk about racial history, but it's not always a big deal about everything. Even at its most preachy, the show doesn't feel like we're learning in an '80s-style "very special episode." Instead, DS9 presents characters of all races with dignity and professionalism, showing us that a better tomorrow is much more than gangsters and warlords. It's also about letting go of our old prejudices and prejudices in the past as we reach a better future for everyone, regardless of skin color.
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