Sonequa Martin-Green, who in Star Trek: Discovery plays the role of Michael Burnham, has recently talked about the show’s diversity and how they actively try to denounce racism.
Discovery on CBS All Access has had a successful run over the past two years. The series not only incorporates elements that fans loved about the original Star Trek series and Star Trek: Enterprise, but creators Bryan Fuller and Alex Kurtzman have made sure that their new take on the popular sci-fi universe is naturally progressive. Recently speaking with the Salt Lake Tribune, the latter discussed how they’ve managed to accomplish this goal.
“I think that we all feel Star Trek is a larger mission than just making great entertainment,” Kurtzman revealed. “Gene Roddenberry’s greatest contribution to the conversation of diversity in the future is that diversity is never addressed in Star Trek.”
This rings true when you consider Martin-Green’s character Burnham, whose color and race is never explicitly addressed in the show. The actress herself seems to be of the same opinion, recently claiming:
“What Gene originally envisioned is being carried out today,” She said. “We are going further with the representation. We have this franchise that has always been built on innovation, and we are continuing to do that.”
Martin-Green continued by saying that the show sees each individual character as a whole, noting:
“It’s not just about seeing people of color. It’s not just about seeing a Black woman as the lead. Not just about seeing an Asian female captain. It’s about seeing these people be well-rounded and strong and integral to the group, and that’s the representation that changes people’s beliefs and can therefore change the world.”
These discussions are especially important amidst the Black Lives Matter protests taking place around the globe. But it seems that the crew of USS Discovery has known how to properly handle the issue of diversity and representation in this sci-fi universe.
The third season of Star Trek: Discovery is still going through post-production and will run for 13 episodes sometime in 2020 on CBS All Access.
