Reflecting on what Star Trek means to me
as a black woman, watching Uhura and Sisko,
it was black people made it to the future.
And in a lot of science fiction,
you don't actually see people of color in the future,
especially in the '70s and '80s.
And so, for me, that was a symbol of like,
you are here, like, you made it.
And as Akiva pointed out,
like when the original series came out,
it was a time of turmoil and upheaval.
And we're in that now,
but in the history of Star Trek,
they also went through a lot of turmoil and upheaval
and they made it through.
And I think that's like the best message for Star Trek,
especially now, is that there is a way through,
and there is hope, and there is a positive future
and we will all get there.
And being a writer on the show, it's also, it's like,
I saw "you are here" in the black characters
in the future, and now I'm in the writers room,
and I am here. And it hits me sometimes
that like, I grew up watching this
with my parents my whole life,
and now I'm writing on a show that they love,
and that I love, and I am here, and it's wonderful.
Yeah, I'm having a moment too.
I'm trying not to, like, choke up
because--Why did I say that? Now I'm gonna choke up!
-: Oh no...
I'm a son of an immigrant, and my father,
he came to this country, and he would look to the stars,
like he wanted to go to space
and he didn't make it to space,
but Star Trek was close enough for him, you know?
And so, he put a love of that exploration
and that curiosity inside of me.
And now, here I am, I get to go to space.
I get to go to this place in the future
full of what we could become and what is the best of us.
So yeah, it means a lot.
It's a very personal and a fantastic and overwhelming thing,
and I'm not going to choke up!
-: You keep saying it...
-: I know, I know.
Ah shoot, sorry.
Anyway, Star Trek means a lot to me and my family
and Star Trek Day is just,
it's a great way to celebrate all of that.