She Canna Take It

Despite a good effort to portray an egalitarian society, the writers of the Original Series missed the Starfleet Academy lecture on sexism. I praise the show as an important first step, but back in the 1960s gender equality was still difficult for many to fully grasp.

It meant a lot to me to see Lieutenant Uhura on the bridge, and in that, the character was a positive role model, but the poor woman still had to answer the phone. At least she had enough rank to spare her the chore of bringing the Captain coffee.

Although Nichelle Nichols was generous to share her beauty with the world, I could not help but wonder why her knickers were showing. I resolved that when I explored space, I would pack a pair of pants.

When "The Next Generation" arrived, I was pleased to see that the sexist problem had been corrected after twenty years. Characters like Dr. Crusher and Counselor Troi made the egalitarian vision of the show become real. Troi has always been one of my favorite characters even if she does get probed a lot.

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