So, I was thinking about how I think Nichelle Nichols' story about how she met the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, jr. and how he told her not to quit the show. Anyway, what I was thinking about was how Gene Roddenberry wanted to foster a utopian race-free environment of the future while at the same time admitting in interviews that he wanted a Scotsman as the engineer and how Asians have always been good pilots or navigators and wanted a Russian in there because the Russians said of the show, "those Americans; we beat them to space and they don't have a Russian on their crew!" Seems to me that if you go out of your way to hire someone just to have a diverse crew or staff, then you're just as guilty of someone actively perpetuating racial stereotypes. Someone who feels as though affirmative action is a good idea doesn't think people should be hired on their merit but by the color of their skin and where their ancestors are from.
Just one of the things that kind of drove a wedge between me and Star Trek. Just because some's black doesn't mean they should be the captain or just because someone's a woman doesn't mean they should be the captain. And yes, I know women and minorities have been held back and denied opportunities in the past. It doesn't mean someone hired over someone else with better qualifications, regardless of race or gender should cut in line. Be more qualified than the person in the lead and then you'll get the part or get hired.
Star Trek, decent show but damn if the creators and the crew didn't have some wacky ideas.
27 Apr 2015, 10:34 am
