When I started writing this essay, I was in several mental spaces. I am always happy, excited to talk about my queerness, to be open about it, to be passionate about my activism, about me.
But now, we as trans people live in uncertain and difficult times. It’s hardly a week goes by that I see more news about government legislation around the world attempting to oppress, suppress and destroy us. Erasing out our existence by proxy of “Protecting Children” or silencing us by “Having concerns” or even the classic “Erasing Women in Sports”. It feels like outside of us, a community of bright, passionate, and powerful people. There is little resistance. It feels like there is something looming over the horizon. Like something is blotting out our sun and we fear to stand in its shadow.
I want to stay hopeful, to imagine that there will be peace for us, to encourage us always to keep moving forwards. It is hard, I am admittedly just a lucky white Qeer person who happens to live somewhat securely. But for people in America, all over Europe, and the rest of the UK where progressively anti-LGBTQ movements are becoming stronger, it takes the wind out of you.
So of course, as I write this Florida signed its “Don’t say gay” bill into law, and I see the ever creeping shadow grow closer to us all. It put a lot of things in perspective. Actions like these galvanize transphobes around the world, knowing that they are gaining more of a foothold with the “Right” to oppress us. I’m tired, and there feels like there is a terrible weight on my back.
But I seek comfort in knowing something. Star Trek is queer.
I mean, it always has been, right to the roots and genesis of the show. From costume designer William Ware Theiss to George Takei is an open and powerful queer icon later in life, to the relationship of Spock and Kirk in, well, all of Trek, to the exploration of gender and identity of Dax, with DS9 featuring the first same-sex kiss of the show’s history, her open bisexuality, Garak, and his tender relationship with Julian. Riker’s full-on display opens Queerness in “The Outcast.”
There have been queer elements of Trek that had never made it into the series, the unproduced episode “Blood and Fire” by David Gerrold was meant to be a TNG era story that was allegorical to the Aids epidemic sweeping the world in the 80s. The story was set to feature an openly gay couple but was nixed by producers at the time. The concept of an Aids influenced story would come back many years later in Enterprise’s “Stigma”, using the concept of Vulcan mind melds as the main crux of the allegory.
Queerness is woven into the genetics of the show, rooted into every single fibre of its being. I could talk for days about all the hidden moments, the little nods, the queer coding, and concepts we have taken hold of with a vice-like grip and refuse to let go of. (Riker dated Worf, you cannot change my mind). Even the man himself, Gene Roddenberry said that he wanted queer crewmembers on the ship in TNG.
Though sadly, he passed away before he could make it happen, it seemed like actually having queerness on display out in full-on Star Trek wouldn’t happen.
So anyway 2022 happened and Star Trek became so fantastically queer that it’s impossible to not see it.
Okay, that’s a little disingenuous to the last few years. Star Trek: Discovery was Queer from series 1, and with its second series, became Queerer, by series 3, we were introduced to 2 trans characters, and as series 4 was being promoted, we had the glorious “Out” magazine cover series with the cast of Discovery and it just makes my heart sing. Hell, as I’m writing this Seven of Nine and Raffi are dating. The iconic character of Seven of Nine from Voyager has a girlfriend. What a time to be alive.
The scale of it, the idea of it, and the sheer openness of it. It’s perfect.
When Queerness exists on the side of a thing, when it isn’t even a B plot, when it’s small and simple it’s easy to dismiss, and that’s what some people. They want these elements to be ignored. People talk about how “Nu-Trek” is only becoming Queer now, but really, it’s been Queer since day one.
And the longer Trek has been running, the stronger and more overt it has become until it is harder to ignore than those who oppose it simply call it “Woke Garbage”, “The things that are ruining new trek”. It’s always been part of Trek, it’s made Trek what it is today, you can’t untangle all of these things that make the greater whole.
I am very open about being trans, not everyone is, but I’m chronically online. So, I don’t have a choice or say in the matter really. I’ve always been trans. I didn’t know about it at first, it took me a while to work it out. But I realized it, eventually. And the more I have lived in the comfort and knowledge of who I am, the more I can express being me. The stronger I become. That’s not even a joke, not some sort of “This isn’t even my final form” bit. I know that the longer I live as I am, as authentically as I am. I will continue to be stronger. I really cannot be stopped.
I spend a lot of time thinking about “me”. How do I fit into this world? The shape of me, this oddly defined thing, and the shape of the world is there a space for me? If I find a space that almost matches me, do I need to alter myself to better fit into it? Will there ever be a space for me? Or will these spaces be removed before too long? Outlawed and written out of the world?
I spend a lot of time thinking about what the future holds, how bleak ours can look, and how hopeful the future of Trek looks like. It’s not perfect. No world is, this isn’t the Masterpiece Society here, it’s just a world where the people are kinder, smarter, and more curious. I hope that there can be a world like that soon, a world where we can be free to exist simply and plainly. One day soon.
Today though, it’s now “Transgender Day Of Visibility”, a day created to celebrate trans lives, before this we only had a day of mourning, to remember those who we lost. Now we have a day of celebrating who we are. Our strengths. Our ability to authentically live, and by living we shall grow stronger.
Our visibility now in media, is our own tool, for as long as they shall fight us. We shall fight back; we shall be our authenticity and we can gain strength from it. No one can pull us down if we are together. We are bright, strong, full of hope and wonder.
We may not all be visible today, maybe we have yet to find ourselves, maybe we have yet to find a space to be seen. But we will, one day, together, find a space where we can all be together, seen, powerful, and alive.
To read more about Transgender Day Of Visibility please visit the following link
