Nearly 30 years ago, in 2024, Deep Space NineJust as the original series imagined a dark, fictional 1990s future in the ’60s, they now imagine their own future. Star TrekIt’s a utopia several centuries in the future. Star Trek He imagined the worst about us, but it’s remarkable how prescient that view turned out to be.
August 30th to September 1st, 2024 has been etched in people’s minds for a long time. Deep Space NineIf you’re a fan of The Force Awakens, you’ll find yourself a fan of this one, especially as the release date draws closer. This is the fantastic “Past Tense” two-parter from Season 3, when Captain Sisko, Dr. Bashir, and Dax accidentally get transported to San Francisco during a critical moment in Earth’s history after their transporter malfunctions. Our Starfleet heroes end up in an America plagued by global inequality and a worsening climate crisis, with the working class and poor becoming even more isolated from the wealthy. San Francisco, like many other major cities in the United States, established a series of “Sanctuary Neighborhoods” to combat the worsening economic and homelessness crises. Originally intended as welfare hubs for displaced residents, offering free housing, healthcare, and employment opportunities, the Sanctuary Neighborhoods quickly transformed into totalitarian ghettos, ruthlessly run by police forces and with their inner workings (and worsening conditions) covered up by local authorities.
Cisco and Bashir were forced to become involved in their own history after their presence unintentionally disrupted the timeline and a man named Gabriel Bell was killed by a violent mugger, Cisco assumed Bell’s identity to keep the original timeline alive, because Gabriel Bell was about to play a major role in changing the course of human history. On the morning of September 1, 2024, a riot broke out between the District’s violent gangs and local police, resulting in a hostage situation in which several residents (including Bell/Cisco) and federal agents were trapped in a processing facility. Access to the media in the District was all but cut off, but thanks to the efforts of Dax, Bashir, and Cisco, residents within the District were able to tell their story to the rest of the country. And despite the hostage negotiations leading to a harsh crackdown by the Governor of California and a massacre in the sanctuary, the brutal incident prompted social change in America, abolishing the District system and finally addressing the class inequality its residents face.
What became known as the Bell Riots – in which “Bell” was credited for non-violently quelling the hostage crisis before federal intervention, and who was eventually recorded as having died afterward – marked a pivotal turning point in Earth’s history, and Bell’s untimely death almost fundamentally changed the course of history. Star TrekWithout the uprising, there would have been no future in which humanity’s collective actions led to a united Earth government, the establishment of Starfleet after first contact with the Vulcans, and ultimately the founding of the Federation. Star TrekThe false history of the 21st century Many Things will get worse before they get better (World War III will break out in 2026, so stay tuned), but there are some immutable points on the road to progress, i.e. Star Trek Importantly, this story reminds us that all is equal, that all is equal, that we must rise and fall, and fight for it endlessly. This story is rooted in this moment of social justice in the face of global inequality, and doesn’t refer so specifically to the consequences of global thermonuclear war. This story says a lot about what the series as a whole believes in as a path to some kind of future — maybe not a future with phaser beams and warp travel, but at least a future of peace and cooperation for humanity, with our wider self, and maybe with the galaxy at large.
But even so, it’s interesting to revisit “Past Tense” as it unfolds now, so to speak, and see the very real parallels it picks up. 2024 is the latest chapter in a divisive year in U.S. political history, with economic concerns about inflation and access to health care high priorities for voters as the presidential election approaches. Last month, California’s current governor, Gavin Newsom, signed an executive order supporting a crackdown on homelessness, in line with a Supreme Court decision that allows states to fine people who sleep rough. The fissures that “Past Tense” inferred and led to at least one dire conclusion are already beginning to form in our reality. Star Trek It is at its finest when we use the fable of utopia to argue the way to its creation in the here and now. We may not have Ben Sisko or Gabriel Bell, but we do have their compassion and their sense of moral righteousness, their capacity to do better and to be better in the face of adversity. Star Trek Whether or not it’s too close to actual events, it has always been reflected back to us.
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