"White genocide" in The Force Awakens?

Now white people are trying to ruin “Star Wars”: Racist reaction to new trailer is part Gamergate, part Donald Trump

The anti-"Star Wars" lunacy seems laughable, but it's related to the toxic male entitlement corroding our politics

By Chauncey DeVegaWhite racists are none too pleased with JJ Abrams’ new “Star Wars” film trilogy. In protest of last evening’s release of the much-anticipated final trailer for this December’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” disgruntled members of the White Right began a Twitter hashtag “BoycottStarWarsVII.” It was a pathetic effort at getting attention; the hashtag was subsequently made popular by those who saw fit to mock it.

It is likely that the white supremacists who are upset by the supposed “anti-white propaganda” and themes of “white genocide” in the new Star Wars films will only have their ire further stoked by Monday night’s trailer that opens with an image of a young woman scavenging a crashed Star Destroyer, a voice over by an alien played by African actress Lupita Nyong’o, then proceeds to focus in on a “black” Stormtrooper turned Resistance leader and hero, and then eventually features a “Latino” X-Wing fighter pilot who valiantly fights against The New Order’s (the next iteration of the evil Empire from the earlier films) improved Tie Fighters.

Of course when viewed on the surface, this faux upset by the White Right about “diversity” and lack of “white” “male” “straight” characters in the new “Star Wars” film is laughable.

The previous “Star Wars” films, with one exception, featured an exclusively white cast. The new movie also has an all-white male cast except for John Boyega as the character “Finn,” Daisy Ridley as the presumed main character Rey; and Oscar Isaac, a Latino, as Poe Dameron. With the exception of Carrie Fisher, the remaining human characters as revealed so far are either depicting, or played by white male actors.

The writers, directors, and most of the senior creative staff for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” are also white men. This is a reflection of Hollywood’s broader demographics where by some estimates are at least 85 percent of the producers, directors, show runners, executives, writers, and other leading creative positions are held by white men.

But when viewed in a broader context, the White Right’s childish and petty protests about “Star Wars” are a reminder of how cultural politics reflect deeper social anxieties, worries, and concerns about power in a given society.When conservatives cry about something, some people say we should ignore them like the whiny babies they are. But one writer disagrees:

Please feed the Star Wars trolls: White supremacists need to be noticed to keep their ideas on the fringe

Yes, trolls want attention. But when you ignore hate, whether on Fox News or Twitter, it does not go away

By Amanda MarcotteDoes ignoring racism make it go away? That’s the underlying premise of Genevieve Koski’s new piece at Vox tut-tutting liberals for giving the #BoycottStarWarsVII hashtag on Twitter attention. The hashtag appears to have been started by two white supremacists who are latching onto whatever news item is trending that day—in this case, the new Star Wars trailer—and using it to push their ludicrous notion that white people are being subject to a “genocide” because the movie has people of color as stars in it. The hashtag immediately become overwhelmed by outraged liberals enjoying their moral superiority over these douchebags and Koski is disgusted by the whole thing, arguing that by giving it this attention, liberals “amplify a niche message and create controversy out of whole cloth.”

She argues that since attention is what the trolls want, the No. 1 priority of liberals should be depriving them of that attention. “Twitter trends are just another source of sustenance for trolls and hate groups,” she argues. “All #BoycottStarWarsVII has truly accomplished is giving them a nice, hearty meal.”

It’s a tempting argument. Many of us feel powerless and angry in the face of hate, and so telling people that we can, almost by magic, make it go away by simply pretending it doesn’t exist is an enticing idea. In this case, the argument is juiced by the fact that the people who started this are a couple of clowns who are afraid to show their own faces in public and who do clearly get off on the attention.

Still, what Koski’s argument fails to take into account is how fringe reactionary ideas like this, if they aren’t checked by liberals, have a tendency to start leaking into mainstream conservative circles. Indeed, a lot of what places like Fox News exist to do is clean up fringe ideas, repackage them in more palatable forms, and feed them to an audience that is most definitely not on the fringe. The only way liberals can interrupt that process is by aggressively tying these kinds of ideas to the fringe racist circles where they began, or otherwise they run a very strong risk of being subjected to this mainstreaming process.Comment:  For more on Star Wars, see Why Are Most Aliens White? and Lucas's Prejudices in Star Wars.

Why are most aliens white?

Here's another of my perennial discourses on science fiction and race. I started it by posting the following on Facebook:

Would Hollywood finance Star Wars, Guardians of the Galaxy, or Jupiter Ascending if the alien races were black or Asian? I'm guessing no.

Because that would make the aliens too "alien," presumably.

This led to the following discussion:They have no problem making individual white characters black and/or asian, why not alien races? I'm all for it!

Although, George Lucas caught hell for making his alien races black and/or asian stereotypes, so they'd have to be very careful about it.It's just funny when you think about all the sci-fi fans and creators who love Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, etc., etc. If you confronted them with a "normal" alien race that was black or Asian rather than white, they'd die of shock.

Same thing in the fantasy genre: Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, How to Train Your Dragon, etc., etc. There's no reason whatsoever that elves, dwarves, or fairies should be white.

Hardcore fans say, "We love these genres as long as the most challenging thing we have to deal with is white actors in makeup."Ahhh, yes, I see what you mean. Geez. Imagine "Avatar" without the blue Na'vi. Which were really supposed to be "alien" Native Americans.Your first comment was on point. Yes, they'd have to avoid making them a race of Jar Jar Binks types. But that's easily done.

I wish the Na'vi weren't so humanlike, but they're a step forward. If only the humans in Avatar weren't mostly white.Were there ANY black characters in Avatar?!I don't remember. Michelle Rodriguez is the biggest "ethnic" character I remember.

The point applies to humans in sci-fi too. For instance, why wouldn't the Chinese dominate space travel 300 or 3,000 years from now? Who knows, but it's certainly possible.

But aliens are supposed to be strange. The point of sci-fi aliens is to challenge us to think differently. So there's really no excuse for making them the white male norm seen in American media.

A double-edged sword

A couple of friends double-teamed me:Doctor Who had them in all colors, shapes and sizes, played by actors in all races, sizes and shapes. I am currently watching all the available episodes, and started with Season 1, episode 1, currently on season 24.

Oh, and a lot of the actors in Lord of the Rings were Maori.And:See, here's the problem I can see popping up, Rob--the first time an entire alien race is depicted with black or asian as their "base," there'll be hordes of people complaining that minorities are being depicted poorly; strange, inhuman, etc. "Why can't the whites be alien and a [black or asian] as the hero?!" It's a double edged sword.Doctor Who does have a nice array of truly alien aliens. And its "human" races are often mixed. But I don't recall any "human" race that was entirely black or Asian. A white race that has some blacks and Asians isn't the same thing.

I understand the problem of portraying minorities as aliens. You'd have to proceed carefully, but I think you could do it.

Doctor Who visits worlds that may or may not be Earth a million years in the future. There's no reason the cast of such an episode couldn't be black or Asian.

Firefly was set in a hybrid Anglo-Chinese universe. Many of the background characters and crew could've been Chinese.

Some major world in Star Wars like Coruscant or Corellia could be predominantly black or Asian. Etc.

A lot of the supporting or "guest" worlds on Star Trek could've been black or Asian. Like Betazoid in ST:TNG, Bajor in DS9, or Ocampa in Voyager. These worlds had a range of characters and wouldn't necessarily be pegged as exotic or inferior. Some characters would be good and some would be bad, creating a realistic sense of diversity.

For more on the subject, see Missing Aliens in Star Trek and Colonialism Inspired Science Fiction.

Lucas's prejudices in Star Wars

In 2012 I posted the following article and comment:

George Lucas cut female X-wing pilots out of Return of the Jedi at the last minute

Can we call Lucas a sexist and a racist for his film choices?

This led to the following discussion with Brad:I think the article says it best that we'll probably never know. However, I'll say two things that aren't exactly defenses of Lucas.

One is that if he WERE sexist, it would have been an easy casting decision just not to screen female actors for the parts in the first place. I don't think anyone would have given that a second thought especially back then, although we might have more to talk about now. Lot of male characters had lines cut too, so I'm not seeing an indictment here.

The second is that Lucas has done a lot of squirrely things with these films for a lot of squirrely reasons. Sexism almost seems TOO EASY of an explanation for why he changed something. More likely that it had to do with some inane, esoteric minutia that would never have occurred to anyone but him.Whatever the reason, there was no excuse for one woman and no minorities among the main characters in Episode IV.

People can always come up with excuses--er, reasons--for their beliefs. Like, "Muslims may be hiding bombs in their robes, or I can't understand what they're saying, or they give off a bad vibe."

What matters is outcomes not, intent. If you're thinking of reasons why a universe doesn't have any significant women or minorities, you're thinking along sexist and racist lines. Whether you realize it or not.In singling out Episode 4, I think you may be placing blame on Lucas that belongs on FOX studios. Star Wars was only Lucas' second major film and he had a tough time selling it to begin with. It's a mistake to think that he had the final say over casting for the film. His only real concession from the studio was permission to use less famous white people. You do remember that this movie was made in the mid-'70s right?

I also think you might be giving Lucas a little too much credit in the creativity department. Much of what Star Wars is was drawn from archetypal medieval literature, Japanese B-movie mysticism, cowboy spaghetti westerns, and WWII combat pictures none of which were particularly big on diversity. If you want to say that Lucas wasn't very enlightened, sure, but I'd say his tropes are more a product of his times than they are bigoted.Fox cared about the race and gender of minor characters such as X-Wing pilots? Thirteen years after Star Trek pioneered an integrated starship crew? Unlikely.

And why did Lucas dismiss the criticism of the first movie before backtracking and casting some minorities in Episode V? If Fox made the decision, Lucas's response should've been, "I totally agree with your criticism, but the studio had the final say on casting." Unless I'm sadly mistaken, that isn't close to what he said.

Lucas had more power when he made the Indiana Jones movies, but his depictions of South American Indians and Asian Indians were stereotypical and arguably racist. So no, I don't cut him any slack for his alleged lack of clout.

The "product of his times" argument applies to any older person who feels uncomfortable around blacks, gays, Muslims, et al. Hence my posting about Person X and the roomful of strangers. Either Lucas and Person X are both racists, or neither are.

"Discomfort" with strangers

Here's the "Person X" posting I mentioned, with comments from people:

Suppose Person X feels uncomfortable in a room full of one type of person: women, blacks, gays, Muslims, old people, the disabled, children, burn victims, CEOs, prostitutes, movie stars, undertakers, televangelists, drug users, nudists, ex-convicts, etc.

You could say X is prejudiced and needs to get over it, but I wouldn't be too harsh on him. Most likely his discomfort comes from ignorance and will fade as he gets to know the people.

I wouldn't necessarily use words like "racism," sexism," "homophobia," or "bigotry" to describe X. He's not saying these people are bad or inferior, only that he's not used to them.

What do you think?Judy
Will X make an effort to get to know them?

For me, that would be the test. ;-)

Laurel
He's probably a bigot/sexist/racist/homophobe or whatever. I never met anyone who said "I'm not a racist, I just don't feel comfortable around those people" who wasn't a big ol' racist. This is one of those things racists say so I'll shut up about race.

If I go so far with my preferences as to avoid an entire group of people, you can bet I don't see them as individuals and do not have positive thoughts about them.I agree, Laurel. But my inclusion of nonracial groups shows it can happen whether race is involved or not.

And I agree, Judy. The first time it happened, I'd be charitable toward X and not condemn him as a bigot. But if he continued to avoid them, refused to learn about them, and kept hinting something was wrong with them, I'd move toward condemning him.Laurel:
I can't think of a roomful of ANY type of people I would be that uncomfortable in except one full of armed terrorists or rapists or something, although the "Laurel in a roomful of televangelists" scenario would probably devolve into a bunch of yelling pretty quick.

It is probably usually a good idea to give a person the benefit of the doubt once, though.

Brad
I think Laurel hit on the key issue--the generalizing of people by a characteristic. If "X" is referring to any group of people collectively when making derogatory remarks about them (i.e. "those people"), I think that indicates a ingrained prejudice that goes beyond simple discomfort. People who do that clearly have bias against the characteristic that "those people" who they are whether we're talking about gays, blacks, women, or CPAs. That goes beyond a simple dislike of an individual or singular behavior. I wouldn't hesitate to label that held belief or expression whatever -ism or -phobia that applies.

And to further the point, I don't think even just a willingness to learn about the group in question and potentially change their attitude is enough to make a difference. While it's possible "X" COULD do that, I don't think they get any credit for it until it actually happens.Comment:  As I said, I'm not sure that we could say Person X is necessarily prejudiced. But yes, prejudice will explain his responses most of the time.

If Person X never met a CPA and has no idea what to expect, I guess you could call his discomfort "prejudice." He's prejudiced against the unknown--thinking a whole class of people will have some harmful or unpleasant trait. But unless the group is murderers or sociopaths or people who never take a bath, that probably won't happen. The group will have the same variety of people as any other group.

Now that Brad made the case that discomfort usually means "ingrained prejudice," go back and apply that to George Lucas and his evident discomfort with casting women and minorities. Lucas's "product of the times" feelings qualify as prejudice.

For more on the subject, see Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

Navajo Star Wars premieres

Navajo dubbed 'Star Wars' a crowd pleaser at premier

By Shondiin SilversmithThe original Star Wars: Episode IV--A New Hope premiered nationwide in 1977, but the characters based in a galaxy far, far away were brought a little closer to home during the Navajo dubbed film premiere on June 30 at the El Morro Theater.

"It has a lot of humor in it," said 2012-2013 Miss Navajo Nation Leandra Thomas adding that she caught herself smiling throughout the whole movie. "I've never seen any of the Star Wars movies and it made a lot of sense seeing it once (and) in the Navajo language."

The first character the audience is introduced to in the film is C-3P0 and R2-D2 as they walk through their spacecraft while it's being attacked. As the first line in Navajo is spoken by C-3P0 the audience erupts in cheers.

"I was very very impressed how all the recordings came together," said Geri Hongeva-Camarillo, who played C-3P0.

As the movie moved forward the crowd reaction remained high as the audience laughed and cheered as each character was introduced with a Navajo voice.

"The tone in Navajo definitely makes a big difference compared to when you listen to something in English," said Donovan Hanley from White Cone, Ariz., who attended the premiere with his mother Ann Maree Hanley. "It was very cool and good representation."Comment:  For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Below:  "Actors James Junes, left, and James Bilagody speak outside the El Morro Theater Sunday evening during the premiere of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope that was dubbed into the Navajo language." (Donovan Quintero)

Indians killed Han Solo!

A Star Wars article notes an interesting comic book featuring Indians:

10 Star Wars Characters Who Needlessly Met Han Solo

By Rob BrickenIn the Star Wars Tales comic—which, to be fair, contains adventures that aren’t even considered part of the expanded universe canon—the Falcon is shot by Imperials, escapes through hyperspace, and crash-lands on a very familiar planet. It’s familiar because it’s Earth, which we know because Han Solo is killed by Native Americans. His body—and the Falcon—is found more than 100 years later by Indiana Jones and Short Round, while investigating the legend of Bigfoot, who is of course Chewbacca. Sure, Han was dead when he "met" Indiana, and it wasn’t even close to being in even the vaguest continuity. Still, I must remind everyone of this nightmarishly dumb encounter so that those in the future will not replicate these mistakes. NEVER FORGET.Several commenters disagreed with Bricken's take on this comic. For instance:Okay the Indiana Jones one I like.

It's depressing but it's a fun short comic story that isn't part of any canon, obviously.

It's just some writer going, "Hey how can we make Indiana and Han meet?" And it makes sense, in a rather depressing way.Comment:  I'm with the commenters. It does sound like fun--if you ignore the thought of Han Solo getting killed.

Of course, if the Indians merely reacted like savages and attacked what they didn't understand, that would be stereotypical. The reverse--that they'd worship the aliens as "sky gods"--also would be stereotypical. A human range of reactions would be best.

For more on Indiana Jones, see Indiana Jones's Criminally Bad Archaeology and Indiana Jones and the Stereotypes of Doom.

Navajo Star Wars cast chosen

A coach as Vader?

Director unveils cast of Navajo 'Star Wars'

By Shondiin SilversmithThe Force proved to be strong with this group of Navajos as they earned the seven primary roles in the upcoming Navajo-language version of "Star Wars."

Terry Teller, of Lukachukai, Ariz. will be the voice of Luke Skywalker.

"It is pretty pretty awesome," Teller said happily, adding that he enjoyed the audition because it required him to really act. "Since it was going to be the first movie in Navajo I wanted it to be the best," he said. "I challenged myself to play the role, as it needs to be. It was hard because I have never done anything like that before."

Anderson Kee of Cottonwood, Ariz. will be the voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Kee said the way the Obi-Wan Kenobi talks about the Force in the movie reminds him of a Navajo medicine man, especially when he says the words in Navajo.

"It was a new experience for me," he said.

Clarissa Yazzie of Rock Point, Ariz. will be the voice of Princess Leia.

Yazzie said she enjoys Princess Leia's sarcastic and dominating personality because she feels that her personality closely resembles Leia's.

"I was excited to just be a part of the whole experience," she said.

James Junes of Farmington, N.M. is the voice of Han Solo - and one of the very few experienced actors to win a part. Junes is part of the comedy team James and Ernie, and has had roles in low-budget films on the Navajo Nation.

Marvin Yellowhair of N.M. is the voice of Darth Vader.

Yellowhair said he wanted to be Darth Vader because he is the main character he remembers from Star Wars, mostly due to the fact that the villain is always in control and he is a leader. He said it related to him as a coach at Rock Point High.

"It felt so good being involved with this project," he said.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Star Wars Translated into Navajo.

Star Wars translated into Navajo

Star Wars Saga to be translated into Diné language

By Bill DonovanComing as a surprise to everyone, especially members of the Navajo Tribe, Obi-Wan Kenobi will soon say, "May the Force be with you" in the Diné language.

Navajo members will soon be able to hear the beloved character from the Star Wars Saga say this and more as the Navajo Nation Museum, Navajo Parks and Recreation, and Lucasfilm, Ltd. have joined forces to dub Episode IV of the classic space fantasy film, Star Wars into the Diné language. This marks the first time that a mainstream movie will be dubbed into the Navajo language.

Manuelito Wheeler, the director of the Navajo Nation Museum, said he's been working on the idea of getting a popular film dubbed into Navajo for more than three years as a way to preserve the Navajo language.

"By preserving the Navajo language and encouraging Navajo youth to learn their language, we will also be preserving Navajo culture," Wheeler said.And:The next step in the process will be casting men and women fluent in Navajo to be voice actors.

Auditions for the roles of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Princess Leia, Han Solo, C-3PO, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Grand Moff Tarkin will be held at the Navajo Nation Museum on Friday, May 3 and Saturday, May 4.

If you are interested in trying out, call 928-871-7941 to book your time slot.

Walk-ins are welcome as well.

The tribe isn't necessarily looking for people who sound like Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill or the others, but rather for performers who have the ability to speak the dialogue with the force and emotions of the original actors, according to Wheeler.Comment:  If your Navajo is rusty, you can try out for Chewbacca.

For more on Star Wars, see Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

Boba Fett meets Coyote

An unusual perspective

Ryan Singer explores modern art through ideas and color

By Carolyn CalvinHis work has evolved over the years but one thing remains constant for Ryan Singer--a desire to express himself as a modern Native American artist.

One of his favorite pieces, "Bounty Hunter and Trickster Encounter" is a "split-screen"-type image with Boba Fett, a bounty hunter from the "Star Wars" movies, on one side of the canvas taking aim, and a coyote on the remaining half of the canvas. It combines one of Singer's main influences--"Star Wars"--with an element of Navajo culture--the Coyote.

Art has always been part of his life. Singer, 37, began drawing when he was a kid in pre-school, studying comic books and album covers from the 1970s.And:In addition, he was interested in science-fiction TV shows such as "Star Trek," Flash Gordon and "Godzilla." The black-and-white "Frankenstein" and werewolf movies also served as inspiration.

As a teenager, Singer began to "do a lot of drawings and comic-book images."

He became interested in surrealism and studied Salvador Dali's work. Singer's own work took on a modern edge depicting amongst other things a cup of coffee or a skateboard. He also became a music aficionado collecting heavy metal and punk music records and creating compilations on cassette tapes.Comment:  For some similar art, see Here Comes Sayn-Day and Coyote/Loki Mash-Up.

Star Trek vs. Star Wars

On Facebook someone asked people which they preferred: Star Trek or Star Wars? My response: Only a tribble-hating Klingon would say Star Wars!

I then posted the following on my Facebook wall:Captain Kirk or Han Solo? Mr. Spock or Yoda? Enterprise or Millennium Falcon? Darth Vader or Khan? Imperial stormtroopers or Klingons? Data or R2-D2? Princess Leia in a metal bikini or Vina the green Orion slave girl? Wesley Crusher or Jar-Jar Binks? Chewbacca or a tribble? You be the judge.

This led to the following discussion with Michael Cooke:Well, the problem with Star Trek for me is the sexism and heterosexism of the show (I can't forgive Next Generation for having Data explore sexuality and, contrary to character--oblivious to the possibility of same sex sexuality), and the Star Trek fans that really make me regret finding any pleasure in the programming at all.

In my high school experience one unpopular Trek fan was literally driven to tears with the taunt of "Spock is Gay!"--I wonder if she slashed her wrists when George Takei came out?

Star Wars at least has its classic first movie, a truly great movie. Star Trek has had a great many movies, not one coming close to 'great'.True, the original Trek did have a lot of race and gender problems. But that was a function of the era, not the show.

Let's recall that there were four series (five if you count the cartoons) and a bunch of movies after the original series. Collectively they determined the nature of the Trek universe. And that universe is no better or worse than any typical fantasy universe.

I don't recall any great moments of racial or sexual politics in the Star Wars mythology. And the point of this posting was to compare the two universes. How do you figure Star Wars is better than Star Trek in this regard, Mike?

Data's brief foray into sex was kind of silly. That happened during TNG's first season, when a lot of silly things occurred.Rob, you could as easily suggest Amos and Andy aren't racist, but a product of their time. You'd be right, but the reality that they are racist in a modern context would stop you from announcing your fandom or arguing for it.

That said, I find the Star Wars universe, with its fascism, politics and poor people suffering--it's got a better claim to realism than Trek's utopian vision, in my opinion.I didn't say the original Trek wasn't racist. Like every other show of that era, it was.

What I said was that the subsequent series and movies addressed the problems. They made Trek 1) no worse than the typical fantasy universe and 2) better than Star Wars in that regard.

True, Star Wars wins on political realism. But Star Trek wins on cultural and biological realism. Every alien race and world in Star Wars is constructed of cardboard. They may look alien, but they have no substance whatsoever.

That's why Star Trek counts as science fiction (barely) while Star Wars is better classified as space opera.

Some better than none

At least the original Star Trek had minorities in it. That's a lot more than the original Star Wars could say for itself, a decade later. "A long time ago, in a pure-white galaxy far away...."

When you say Star Wars has more political realism, you're basically dodging my point, Mike. Let's try again: How do you figure Star Wars is better than Star Trek in terms of racial or sexual issues?

Incidentally, I've criticized Trek at length in postings such as these:

The Indian-Star Trek Connection
Star Trek Voyager:  Chakotay

So try to avoid your usual tactic of assuming you know what I believe. Okay?

If you want to get anal about science fiction, it's a shame my father died. His stance was that unless the piece of writing was on point scientifically in every way and the speculative element perfectly plausible and useful to science as something to inquire about--the work should never be called science fiction! It must be called "fantasy"!

Really the character Data pissed me off royally in terms of 'new Trek'. No artificial intelligence interested in sexuality would be capable of ignoring homosexuality, yet Trek kept it's tradition of projecting into the future the prejudices of today.

The bottom line of course is quality, and really it's perfectly possible to create good stories for either 'universe'. So far the Star Wars cartoon is setting a new standard by being better than the latest few movies. And I have enjoyed the retro ('pre Kirk') Trek show, what I've seen of it.Star Trek kept its tradition of projecting into the future the prejudices of today...exactly as Star Wars did.

I did call them fantasy universes, not SF universes...right?

I haven't seen the new Star Wars cartoon, so it may be doing great things. Some Star Trek novels are doing great things in terms of adding political and scientific depth to the ST universe.

My TiVo has recorded all the new shows on network TV. I don't think I've seen any gay characters yet. In 2010, homosexuality is still the love that dare not speak its name.

Trek writers = morons?Actually the very latest Trek show (in development?) is supposed to feature a gay character or a gay couple, or such is the gossip I've heard.

I now have no TV and only enjoy what is shown online.

The science fiction argument is my father's, it's all fantasy to me, I don't distinguish. I figure if you're going to use science you should get the science right--but science is not important the way plot and characterization are important.

It actually takes effort to offend me. If the folks writing Next Generation simply thought it through, the character of Data could have developed sexual feelings like we do--not in his control. But NO, they have to have Data not know and be curious--which makes them BIGOTS to have Data never consider homosexuality--because the character most naturally would at least consider it without an existing sexuality.

Star Wars features characters comfortable in their skin and is a war story--in war what counts is if you can fire your gun straight, not who you sleep with. So the heterosexist omission is inoffensive. As for sexism, Princess Leia is far more liberated than Uhura.Data didn't spring out of thin air, even in his fictional universe. A heterosexual scientist presumably created and programmed him. One could speculate that the scientist incorporated his sexual bias into the programming.

Star Wars is a war story...so every aspect of it that isn't political or military is one-dimensional cardboard. Didn't I say that already?

Captain Janeway, Major Kira, T'Pol, and Dr. Crusher are among the female Trek characters who are deeper than Princess Leia.They have more time devoted to them as well, Star Wars was never a TV show.

That's no excuse, the show demonstrated that sexuality was new to Data, as such they put themselves between a rock and hard place. They could have Data discover sexuality has been programmed into him and there would have been no harm, no foul. But what they did was put a character in a place where homosexuality is an inevitable question--and not raise that question. Not cool, and I know the writing is of such a caliber the writers put it in and a producer removed it! No other way unless you want to tell me TNG was written by morons.Given the uneven quality of TNG, a lot of episodes probably were written by morons. <g> I suspect you or I could've done better.

But the real problem was the producers. Here, read about LGBT in Star Trek:

LGBT in Star Trek
Homosexuality in Star Trek

Anyway, you're putting a lot of emphasis on Data's one sexual encounter. It was a few minutes out of 178 hours in one series out of six. I'm judging the whole when I say Star Trek is better than Star Wars overall.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.