Why Should Uhura Get The Credit?

[Nedersong]

People honor Nichelle Nichols for her role of Uhura because she was a pioneer for women's rights, and even more so for black women's rights. Her role of Uhura as the ship's communications officer was a milestone for black women.

But there's even a bigger milestone that is for all women, not jsut black women.

And that honor goes to....


Majel Barret. Why/

In "The Cage" she played the shiops second offic3e and was the first to be called Numer Onbe.

But because The Cage was never really shown, it is less well known and not very popular as Uhuira.

But Majel Barret should get the honor for being a pioneer for women's rights.

 

[Admiral2]

People honor Nichelle Nichols for her role of Uhura because she was a pioneer for women's rights, and even more so for black women's rights. Her role of Uhura as the ship's communications officer was a milestone for black women.

But there's even a bigger milestone that is for all women, not jsut black women.

And that honor goes to....


Majel Barret. Why/

In "The Cage" she played the shiops second offic3e and was the first to be called Numer Onbe.

But because The Cage was never really shown, it is less well known and not very popular as Uhuira.

But Majel Barret should get the honor for being a pioneer for women's rights.

Hear, hear, absolutely and right on!

 

[OmahaStar]

Perhaps because Majel is white, and there had been many whites being shown in "leading" parts before then. Blacks were shown in subservient roles: maids, "mammy" types, etc. The character of Uhura was a black female in a leading role, and as Whoopi Goldberg put it "She ain't no maid!"

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Whatever. I don't know that rejected ideas count for much as "milestones."

 

[JiNX-01]

Perhaps because Majel is white, and there had been many whites being shown in "leading" parts before then. Blacks were shown in subservient roles: maids, "mammy" types, etc. The character of Uhura was a black female in a leading role, and as Whoopi Goldberg put it "She ain't no maid!"

She was a black woman playing an officer.

 

[Ethros]

I always think giving her a belt to wear (some may call it a skirt) and having us see her knickers all the time, kinda negates the female empowerment argument

 

[Broccoli]

I always think giving her a belt to wear (some may call it a skirt) and having us see her knickers all the time, kinda negates the female empowerment argument

That is because you are looking at it from a present-day mindset. Back in the 1960s, mini-skirts were indicative of the women's rights movement (though, that might not have been the reason that Roddenberry had them wear it ).

 

[shatastrophic]

No offense but Majel was sleeping with the creator, wait wasn't Nichelle too?

 

[SFRabid]

...
But Majel Barret should get the honor for being a pioneer for women's rights.

What she did pales compared to Lucille Ball who moved women from leading rolls to leading production companies. As for Nichelle Nichols, I doubt you can imagine the pressure she was under or the obstacles she faced just for the chance to be on a white TV show.

 

[SFRabid]

I always think giving her a belt to wear (some may call it a skirt) and having us see her knickers all the time, kinda negates the female empowerment argument

Does Kirk going shirtless every other episode negate male empowerment?

 

[Dayton3]

Nichelle Nichols gets a lot of credit for her efforts in the 1970s recruiting women and minority astronauts for NASA.

IIRC, Starlog magazine once labeled her as one of the most important women to ever appear in science fiction thanks to her real life actions involving the real life space program.

 

[JiNX-01]

Nichelle Nichols gets a lot of credit for her efforts in the 1970s recruiting women and minority astronauts for NASA.

IIRC, Starlog magazine once labeled her as one of the most important women to ever appear in science fiction thanks to her real life actions involving the real life space program.

I can't wait to meet her at Vegas next month!

 

[Captain Leslie]

No offense but Majel was sleeping with the creator, wait wasn't Nichelle too?

Gah! I hope not....Nichelle Nichols is a hereditary goddess to the males in my family...Thats one saucy mental image I dont want anywhere near my conscious mind!

 

[c5maier]

Nichelle Nichols gets a lot of credit for her efforts in the 1970s recruiting women and minority astronauts for NASA.

I have read that she made a film "What's in it for me?" for that purpose. Has anybody on this forum ever seen it or know any details about it. It does not seem to be available at all, which is a surprise to me considering how many NASA films spanning the whole half century are available today. I am sure, this would be a fairly popular film among both space enthusiasts, Trekkers and Nichelle Nichols fans (and no - those are not entirely the same folks, though I among many would count myself as part of the overlap).

 

[Hermiod]

I imagine Uhura/Nichelle Nichols gets a lot of the credit when TOS was first being run nobody had seen "The Cage". It didn't air until 1988. Yes, people saw "The Menagerie" but Uhura's place on the bridge was well established by then.

 

[FordSVT]

Perhaps because Majel is white, and there had been many whites being shown in "leading" parts before then. Blacks were shown in subservient roles: maids, "mammy" types, etc. The character of Uhura was a black female in a leading role, and as Whoopi Goldberg put it "She ain't no maid!"

She was a black woman playing an officer.

An officer who answered the phone.

I kid. They were very careful to portray her as a person with authority, intelligence and presence whenever they were given the chance to.

 

[bluedana]

Three roles changed the landscape for blacks on TV in the sixties: Bill Cosby in "I Spy" (black man as equal leading man with white actor, much acclaimed role); Diahann Carroll in "Julia" (the first black woman to star in her own non-variety show); and Nichelle Nichols in "ST" (as a black woman who was an officer, not a domestic).

We can look back and scoff at her countless, "Hailing frequencies open, sir," and "Captain, I'm frightened," lines, but it was a real watershed in TV for the time. Not to mention the first interracial kiss - yes, it was forced and not romantic at all, but this was in a time where black touching white was forbidden in many parts of the country and all of TV. It was tantamount to two men or two women kissing on the TV a few years ago.

The Uhura role shouldn't be held to the standard of jumping the Grand Canyon; it was a small but hugely important step.

 

[Keith1701]

Nichelle Nichols gets a lot of credit for her efforts in the 1970s recruiting women and minority astronauts for NASA.

IIRC, Starlog magazine once labeled her as one of the most important women to ever appear in science fiction thanks to her real life actions involving the real life space program.

I can't wait to meet her at Vegas next month!

I hope to meet her again as well next month.

 

[Dayton3]

I always think giving her a belt to wear (some may call it a skirt) and having us see her knickers all the time, kinda negates the female empowerment argument

That is because you are looking at it from a present-day mindset. Back in the 1960s, mini-skirts were indicative of the women's rights movement (though, that might not have been the reason that Roddenberry had them wear it ).

Excellent point.

In the 1960s, mini-skirts were a pretty well known symbol of women's liberation as it showed that women were not going to be bound by traditional restraints on dress.

Of course, GR was obsessed with getting some tail so that was probably the major factor.

 

[Borg451]

People honor Nichelle Nichols for her role of Uhura because she was a pioneer for women's rights, and even more so for black women's rights. Her role of Uhura as the ship's communications officer was a milestone for black women.

But there's even a bigger milestone that is for all women, not jsut black women.

And that honor goes to....


Majel Barret. Why/

In "The Cage" she played the shiops second offic3e and was the first to be called Numer Onbe.

But because The Cage was never really shown, it is less well known and not very popular as Uhuira.

But Majel Barret should get the honor for being a pioneer for women's rights.

shouldnt the person who came up with the idea of having a blacko as a normal character be given the medal.