Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfleet?

[Timo]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

I for one find it difficult to understand why Sisko would care about skin color, or the African-American heritage. Sure, he was born in what used to be the United States, but did he grow up in the basement of the Let's Remember Slavery And Frighten Little Kids With It Museum or what?

He lived three centuries after racial segregation officially ended there, and odds are that about two centuries had passed since there was notable skin color racism in North America. What in his surroundings would incite him to take a close interest in his "family past", beyond perhaps learning as a child that great-great-great-great-granddad had once been what they used to call "slave" but what a modern kid simply cannot comprehend?

There may have been some sort of an exceptional formative moment in his past regarding that. Indeed, there may be some exceptional trauma there, to send him into the Benny Russell fugues. But the stress should be on "exceptional" here - Ben Sisko in the 24th century surroundings looks like an utter freak, comparable to a person who today would get all excited about which kind of trousers his ancestors wore in the French Revolution.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Timo]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

I for one find it difficult to understand why Sisko would care about skin color, or the African-American heritage. Sure, he was born in what used to be the United States, but did he grow up in the basement of the Let's Remember Slavery And Frighten Little Kids With It Museum or what?

He lived three centuries after racial segregation officially ended there, and odds are that about two centuries had passed since there was notable skin color racism in North America. What in his surroundings would incite him to take a close interest in his "family past", beyond perhaps learning as a child that great-great-great-great-granddad had once been what they used to call "slave" but what a modern kid simply cannot comprehend?

There may have been some sort of an exceptional formative moment in his past regarding that. Indeed, there may be some exceptional trauma there, to send him into the Benny Russell fugues. But the stress should be on "exceptional" here - Ben Sisko in the 24th century surroundings looks like an utter freak, comparable to a person who today would get all excited about which kind of trousers his ancestors wore in the French Revolution.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[EEE]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

I think politicizing Star Trek is just plain cheap, and is short sighted in terms of Star Trek.

 

[Apogeal Alpha01]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

We find Picard in a traditional family French vineyard, Crusher knew well her European heritage. Keiko O'Brien had traditional art and ate ethnic foods. Others had wall hangings that reflected some ethnic heritage. Janeway loved De Vinci and old world Europe, so I don't find it strange that Sisko would have African art or draw inspiration from his heritage. Why would Sisko be divorced from his heritage? I too, would find it strange if he focused on a legacy of suffering in the 24th Century, rather than the promise of the present. I don't think GWR is saying that. I don't think African Art is a sign of that. We all find strength from learning about people who did great thing in difficult times, and I seriously doubt that history is not taught in Federation schools. What’s past is prologue, as someone reminded us recently.

 

[Timo]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

The African art is something that isn't inherent in the stereotypical New Orleans childhood setting, yet also natural enough a hobby either for Ben Sisko, or for the Siskos... As you say, it's the 1960s style activism that doesn't well befit Ben's own situation, nor sound like a plausible family tradition of the Siskos in the past half a dozen generations.

As for Crusher's roots, well, she knows something about stereotypical old Scotland because her family used to live in a planet-sized old Scotland theme park! I wouldn't really call that European heritage. Especially when Beverly herself is supposedly from the Moon anyway.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Good Will Riker]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

The African art is something that isn't inherent in the stereotypical New Orleans childhood setting, yet also natural enough a hobby either for Ben Sisko, or for the Siskos... As you say, it's the 1960s style activism that doesn't well befit Ben's own situation, nor sound like a plausible family tradition of the Siskos in the past half a dozen generations.

Having spent time with the Bajorans and their long proud history and traditions, as well as their recent enslavement by the Cardassians, may as well have helped evoke those memories in Benjamin Sisko.

 

[Red Ranger]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

I for one find it difficult to understand why Sisko would care about skin color, or the African-American heritage. Sure, he was born in what used to be the United States, but did he grow up in the basement of the Let's Remember Slavery And Frighten Little Kids With It Museum or what?

He lived three centuries after racial segregation officially ended there, and odds are that about two centuries had passed since there was notable skin color racism in North America. What in his surroundings would incite him to take a close interest in his "family past", beyond perhaps learning as a child that great-great-great-great-granddad had once been what they used to call "slave" but what a modern kid simply cannot comprehend?

There may have been some sort of an exceptional formative moment in his past regarding that. Indeed, there may be some exceptional trauma there, to send him into the Benny Russell fugues. But the stress should be on "exceptional" here - Ben Sisko in the 24th century surroundings looks like an utter freak, comparable to a person who today would get all excited about which kind of trousers his ancestors wore in the French Revolution.

Timo Saloniemi

Timo:

Well, that last statement kind of trivializes Sisko's interest. As a student of history, he's probably keenly aware of the role race played in the founding of the U.S. and how it continued to impact folks into the 21st century. Perhaps reading about slavery and Jim Crow reminded him of unequal civilizations he saw in his travels and it bothered him that the land of his ancestry once practiced such acts.

He probably found it hard to believe that New Orleans was once a battleground for some of the most violent acts in the Civil Rights struggles of the 1960s. Kind of like how outraged Civil War enactors get over battles that took place more than 140 years ago.

Red Ranger

 

[Apogeal Alpha01]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

The African art is something that isn't inherent in the stereotypical New Orleans childhood setting, yet also natural enough a hobby either for Ben Sisko, or for the Siskos... As you say, it's the 1960s style activism that doesn't well befit Ben's own situation, nor sound like a plausible family tradition of the Siskos in the past half a dozen generations.

As for Crusher's roots, well, she knows something about stereotypical old Scotland because her family used to live in a planet-sized old Scotland theme park! I wouldn't really call that European heritage. Especially when Beverly herself is supposedly from the Moon anyway.

Timo Saloniemi

Ah. She lives in the burbs.

And, I replaced windows in a man's house that had a very extensive collection of African art, originally from New Orleans, he returns there quite often. He'd been to African, was adopted by a tribe there and now imports coffee grown in that country. (I happen to be a coffee lover, so we had something in common.)

This is to say that black people there may indeed relish knowing that history.

 

[Hofner]

Re: Who was Ben Sisko's role model who influenced him most for Starfle

I think Ben Sisko's idol was Avery Brooks, an actor who became President of the US in 2016.

What?!? Like we've never had an actor become President before.

Robert