FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 5, 1997
WILL SEXY NEW STAR TREK CHARACTER BE A LESBIAN?
Sources at the offices of "Star Trek: Voyager" producers Jeri Taylor, Richard Berman and Michael Pillar have revealed that the new Borg character played by actress Jeri Ryan ("Dark Skies") will eventually be revealed as a lesbian, making her the first gay character to appear on the series.
"Although I'll certainly be thrilled if this happens, we are taking a cautious wait-and-see attitude," says Tim Perkins, director of the Voyager Visibility Project, an online group that has been lobbying the producers to live up to Gene Roddenberry's 1991 announcement that he would be adding gay and lesbian characters to the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Roddenberry, whose announcement in the gay and lesbian newspaper "The Advocate" was largely ignored by mainstream press, died several months later of a heart attack.
"No gay or lesbian crew member ever appeared on any iteration of Star Trek after Gene died," continues Perkins, "not The Next Generation, not Deep Space Nine, not Voyager. There have been constant rumors that a gay or lesbian character was about to be added, including Tasha Yar, Ro Laren, Data, Geordi, B'Ellana Torres, Harry Kim and Kira Nerys, but none has ever materialized. Our hopes --and the producers credibility-- have been stretched to their limits."
Perkins says that Los Angeles member of his 300 member online organization, co-sponsored by GLAAD, was recently told by a member of the Voyager production staff that the "Seven of Nine" character introduced in this week's season premiere will finally fulfil Roddenberry's promise, being the first and most visible of several gay and lesbian crewmembers. However, the creative team made a calculated decision not to publicize the character's sexuality until the relevant episodes air. Even then, the attitude will be matter-of-fact.
The Seven of Nine character is a human who was assimilated by the Borg at age 5. She has minimal memories of her childhood and no human identity. She has spent 20 years of her life as a sexless Borg drone, controlled by the collective mind.
When separated from the hive on Voyager, Captain Janeway decides to try to "de-assimilate" Seven of Nine and help her regain her humanity. The holographic doctor begins to tinker with restoring her human appearance, removing the mechanical prosthetics the Borg graft onto their biological subjects. As the process proceeds, she begins to be revealed as a lushly beautiful human female.
However, Seven of Nine has some problems about being disconnected from the Borg and doesn't necessarily want to "learn" to be human. She is a blank slate, who has to adjust to having a free will, to having individual reactions to stimuli, to having sexual feelings. She has no idea how to relate to humans.
This will lead to a number of miscues and misunderstandings. In fact, the characters of the holographic Doctor and Seven of Nine will have the most in common in that they are both technological creatures in the process of becoming human. They are both on a journey.
It will be very clear from the beginning that Seven of Nine has no concept of sexual pleasure or gender or monogomous relationships or sexual guilt. She will be experiment with discovering her own body and she will discover that her body and her mind respond overwhelmingly to other women. This will be a part of her humanity that she and no other member of the crew will consider unusual or subject to change.
"After Ellen Degeneres and her character came out on national television, it seems there are more lesbian and gay characters than ever before," says Perkins, "The producers of Trek have delayed so long that the addition of this character may be anti-climatic. However, the fact that she exists in a future where there is total acceptance of her orientation allows the character to develop and act in ways that a gay or lesbian character in a comedy or drama set in today's society could not. This character could still make history for Trek, although at this point I personally think a male character would have more impact."
"At first I was leery about the idea of the "evolving" realization of sexuality, but Seven of Nine literally has no sexual experience. The fact that she realizes she is a lesbian means that she has to interact with at least one female crewmember who identifies herself as a lesbian --and that's good news. I can't wait to meet the gay couple in security who become their best friends."
Perkins says he and his organization will continue to monitor the program to see whether or not Seven of Nine develops as their source has informed them. In the meantime, the Voyager Visibility Project online petition asking the producers to add an ongoing gay or lesbian character to Star Trek will continue to be forwarded to the producers as web surfers sign it. The website and petition may be found at http://www.gaytrek.com.
Paramount refused to comment on our release. Although we received calls from a number of gay publications, including Curve, The Advocate and a number of others, no straight or mainstream press called us to discuss this release.
You will find copies of email messages regarding the press release below.
Subject: New Voyager Character
And my thoughts are that if your source is accurate it's so nice to
know that lesbianism can be blamed on not being allowed to grow up
in a human environment.
Or my fave - "Can't trust men...." after all, I'm sure it was "male"
Borgs who assimilated her.
They may be trying to make it easy for the viewers to digest - but it
may be hard for me to stomach.
*******Outspeaker Responds:
Ha! You may have a point. However, remember that even if some people interpret Seven of Nine's lesbianism as being caused by her
assimilation, she is going to have to meet a well-adjusted, happy
lesbian crewmember in order to discover that lesbianism exists --
and that person --plus the reaction or lack of reaction of other crew members-- can make it clear that lesbianism is not caused by traumatic events, but is a normal genetic variation of human sexuality that is fully-accepted in the 24th Century.
Subject: 7 of 9 A Lesbian?
Just wanted to pass along my reaction to what I guess
we'll have to call the news. Bear with me, as it's a bit conflicted. As am
I, lately. Remember when life was simple, and right and wrong were
mutually exclusive states of events?
I've finally worked out the moral dilemnas inherent in the Princess
Diana/Mother Theresa comparisons. My spiritual self-esteem took a hit when I
realized I'm a Diana fan and Theresa bores me. At first I was horrified to
think that maybe it was because the Living Saint only wore one outfit, but
even I'm not THAT shallow. I've decided to ignore what it means about our
mutual relationships with men, jerky inlaws, and food, and instead
concentrate on the undeniable truth that $260 million dollars from the
Princess' memorial fund could, theoretically, treat a lot of lepers. It's
not exactly morally sound reasoning, but hey, it kept me out of analysis and
mass both. I also recently decided that it isn't mentally deficient of me
to watch Martha Stewart if I tune in only for her live segments and never her
taped tv show. I figure that proves that I don't actually _want_ to feel
inadequate in all aspects of female life; I am actually secretly waiting for
her to have a nervous breakdown. That woman has just GOTTA lose it some day,
and on that day, I intend to be there. For women everywhere.
And so now, with my liberal arts education and ten years of conciousness
raising already strained to the breaking point, somebody throws me *this*
moral quandry, on Voyager.
I'm torn, I really am. On the one hand, I want to say to the producers:
Thank you for finally doing the right thing. Your courage and foresight are
to be commended. I very much look forward to meeting 7 of 9 and her romantic
interests in furture episodes. It really is about time you all recognized
the spirit of Gene Rodenberry and IDIC with an openly gay main character. 7
of 9 is also, unlike Dax, a _human_ character, which lends a bit more
credence to the Star Trek future's optimism for young, gay viewers. I feel
like celebrating.
And heaven knows, I don't want to seem to be asking for too much, here. That
would be, just sooooo unlike me :^) ... but. Butbutbutbutbutbut.....
don't take this the wrong way, but, something about this also makes me want
to bite somebody, hard.
I also want to ask the producers: Does the first and only visbly gay or
lesbian character on the most forward-looking television series ever produced
really HAVE to be someone who's been physically mutilated? Does it HAVE to
be someone who's spent her entire life as a member of "the closest thing to
'pure evil' in the galaxy"? Does it HAVE to be someone who's been
psychologically abused for her entire life? Does it HAVE to be someone who
never had a human home, with loving parents and normal relationships? MUST
we feed into the "all lesbians are radical feminists, rape victims who hate
men" nonsense (good heavens, 7 of 9 hates all HUMANS, which is a bit extreme
even for us radical feminists) AGAIN, and MUST we do it on STAR TREK?
Oh, I know what they'll say: picky,picky, picky. For all I know, they'll
also blame my disappointment with them on PMS. After what's been done to
the Janeway character on occassion, I wouldn't put that past them.
And, I admit, I may take my Trek a bit too seriously. But I maintain, this
is serious stuff, and IT IS NOT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR A NORMAL HEALTHY PERSON
TO BE GAY. IT IS NOT TOO MUCH TO ASK that the first lesbian character be,
say, just some nice girl from Massachusetts whose parents were the last
ambassodors to Andor. Somebody normal, instead of an angry, ill-adjusted
torture victim whose primary distinguishing characteristics are self-loathing
and a butch haircut. THEY CAN DO THIS.
And what's more, THEY OUGHT TO DO THIS: Trekkers everywhere, some of them
even more picky than I am, would appreciate that tiny acknowledgement that
not only will homosexuals survive, be accepted and succeed for the next few
centuries, but that they are not now and never were "made"; they are and will
be BORN. (I for one would also also enjoy seeing a person with some sense
finally make it out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, thank you
very much .... but there I go, getting picky again.)
And for the record, before anybody says anything, these guys disappoint me
waaaaaaayyyyy more often than I menstruate.
-- Cath :]
Subject: Seven Of Nine
Well, I was going through my taped shows that I missed last week and I
caught the previews for next week's Voyager. A few words come to mind:
BETRAYAL, DECEIT and LIES. So much for Seven of Nine becoming a lesbian.
Darrel
********Outspeaker Responds:
You can NEVER judge an episode by the promo, wolfman. Seven
is simply "discovering" her sexual component, not acting on her
identity --or so we assume. If she develops a sexual relationship
with a man --and we see no woman on the scene. Then, we
can feel angry and betrayed and redouble our efforts.
Date: Mon, 8 Sep 1997
From: "Deborah Levinson"
From: CathMarc@aol.com
Date: Sun, 14 Sep 1997
From: wolfman2@gte.net
Date: October 5 97
http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/Heights/8528