Sexism And The Women’s Costumes from Original ‘Star Trek’
I'm still waiting for men to be as passionate about other men wearing the TNG skant
I would have thought we’d be past this nonsense, but then again, looking around at the state of our nation and society, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised unfortunately.
And that being the costumes Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry had women cast members wear as Starfleet uniforms in the original series.
It’s a topic nearly as old as the franchise itself, and remains contentious even though it really shouldn’t be.
Of course, I’m talking about those short little minidresses that served as the uniforms for the women who were members of Starfleet during the original series.
And the appropriateness of such costumes came up — for the umpteenth time — in one of the Star Trek social media groups that I frequent.
As is usually the case, it was a man — and from what I could tell, a man of an older generation who would have been a fan of the original series — making the argument that the revealing costumes were flattering and nothing but the height of fashion.
First off, why is usually men who insist on this argument. Very few women — those most affected by such styles — ever make such a case.
Inevitably, the fact that Grace Lee Whitney liked the minidress is used as some definitive justification that there was nothing inappropriate with the original minidress uniforms.
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She said that original pants used as a unisex uniform his her “dancer’s legs.”
Clearly Whitney was looking at the minidress as a flattering Hollywood costume — not as what might have been the best uniform for actual starship personnel of the future.
It’s hard to imagine any women in positions of authority getting the respect from male colleagues that they would need for effective leadership while wearing a uniform where the intent clearly is to sexualize the wearer.
The one woman who we saw in authority in original Star Trek, of course, was Majel Barrett’s Number One from “The Cage” and “The Menagerie.”
She wore pants.
Could you imagine Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) commanding the starship Voyager in a minidress?
Or Admiral Alynna Nechayev (Natalia Nogulich) getting tough with Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) while wearing one?
Of course not.
That Star Trek creator and executive producer Gene Roddenberry approved the minidress design shouldn’t be surprising.
For all of his vision and positive qualities, he never respected women all that much. This was a man, after all, who not only cheated on his wife but also was even unfaithful to his mistress with yet another affair on the side.
Sexism in Star Trek didn’t end with the minidresses, unfortunately. The cleavage-bearing outfits given to Marina Sirtis to wear as Deanna Troi, during most of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the catsuit Jeri Ryan had to wear as Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager and the provocative wardrobe and scenes for Jolene Blalock as T’Pol in Star Trek: Enterprise are but a few of the examples of how its endured in the franchise through the decades.
None of which very much ever did a whit to actually advance the story or narrative.
All of it exists for no reason other than satisfy the male gaze.
That men often seem to defend the minidresses strikes me, honestly, as a bit gross and misogynistic — and even a bit like the current right-wing meme, “Your body, my choice.”
No man will ever have the credibility to defend the original minidresses, or any of the rest of the evident sexism in Star Trek unless and until he also supports and defends men wearing the TNG skant with as much conviction and fervor.
Yeah, I’m not waiting for that day either.
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