Should we Put the Gay Issue to Rest? by MTabek Written in January of 2002.
	Receiving this assignment, I knew that I didn't want to follow the flocks of people who would probably find the newest war information, or some other new disaster happening in the world, so I went searching elsewhere for a story. I found it at www.syfyportal.com. Even though it is a science fiction site focusing on mainly Star Trek information (as in new shows, scoops, rumors, etc.,) I found this very good article on a subject I feel very strongly about. For decades now, since Star Trek: The Next Generation, fans have been asking, pleading, and otherwise trying to put their power into the shows by demanding that a gay character be placed within either the main cast, or repeating character roster. Unfortunately has yet to come to pass, and now many are wondering if the time has passed for Star Trek to make an impact with this. Throughout its almost 40 year run, Star Trek has dealt with topics ranging from war, like the Cold and Vietnam wars, to racism. Racism has been prominently shown in the episode "Let this be your last battlefield" and even more powerfully, in a woman- a black woman, as a main character shown in a position of power. This forever changed the American idea of blacks being inferior to whites. It was also very controversial. Nowadays though, with B&B (as Rick Berman and Brannon Braga are being toted as in the Star Trek world), ratings are all that matter. They really don't care about actually making a show that riles people up for once. Think of how much notoriety they could have for making a show that lived up to the great mandate from the Great Bird of the Galaxy-Gene Roddenberry. But no, they don't want that, and for this, they are becoming hated people by the fans. The fans know many things; we aren't stupid like a lot of people think that fans are. We love the effects and explosions, but we want a show that can truthfully rip apart our lives and expose the ideals that are at the very core of this country right now. The gay population is growing, and becoming more vocal also. Gay people are demanding rights just as the blacks did back when the Original Star Trek series aired in the 60's. Today, a time in which people are actually naive to believe that discrimination doesn't exist, the GLBT community is discriminated against. In the workplace, in our own communities, society is pushing us out of the way, like a side-thought, and it is morally unfair and wrong. If a show like Star Trek gave a strong voice to the GLBT community, we would have just gotten a very strong ally. Its been done once, and it should be done again. But is it too late? Quite possibly it is. Gays and lesbians have become shown in a rather dark light lately, shows like Survivor and Real World don't necessarily show us in our best light... as real people, with real lives, and real emotions. Not all of us are hard-assed jerks who just like to piss people off by flaunting our difference as a superiority. Rich did this in the first Survivor, and as cute as Danny is, his actions in Real World: In New Orleans didn't exactly hold up our ideals either. People must realize though that these are individuals, they shouldn't be the sole presenters for an entire group of people. That is why I am firmly stating that it is NOT too late for Star Trek to include a gay character. By showing a member of the GLBT community in a good light, as a person just like everyone else, being accepted by the rest of the crew... it would go a long way to helping to erase racism in this country.