NewsT. Rick Jones

READ: What Star Trek stars are saying about President Biden's inauguration

NewsT. Rick Jones
READ: What Star Trek stars are saying about President Biden's inauguration
President Joseph R. Biden takes the oath of office during his inauguration

President Joseph R. Biden takes the oath of office during his inauguration

JANUARY 20, 2021 - Today marks the start of a new era in the United States, with the swearing in of the 46th president, Joe Biden. In today’s inauguration, Biden took the country’s reins from outgoing President Trump, a leader whose philosophies were broadly incompatible with Star Trek’s ideal of “infinite diversity in infinite combinations”. (And that’s putting it nicely.)

In the run-up to the election, many Star Trek stars lent their support to Biden’s campaign. And today, after the inauguration, they are celebrating finally being able to call him “President”. Some stars took to Twitter to express their feelings on the day.

First up: Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Picard) spent the day retweeting (as she often does), with one particularly memorable moment early in the ceremony. Ryan retweeted a picture of Capitol Police officer Eugene Goodman escorting Vice President Kamala Harris onto the stage. If you recall, Officer Goodman was hailed a hero after the coup attempt at the Capitol on January 6th; he could be seen in videos leading a mob of rioters away from the Senate chambers, alone. In her retweet, Ryan said, “Oh my heart #hero”.

One of the standout parts of the inauguration ceremony was 22-year-old Amanda Gorman, America’s first ever Youth Poet Laureate, reading her poem, “The Hill We Climb”. LeVar Burton (Star Trek: The Next Generation), himself a leader in literary education for his work on Reading Rainbow and LeVar Burton Reads, tweeted in appreciation for Gorman’s performance: “There is a new star in the literary firmament and her name is @TheAmandaGorman!”

Star Trek: Discovery’s Lt. Rhys, Patrick Kwok-Choon likewise quoted Gorman while retweeting a video of her performance, saying, “The new dawn blooms as we free it. For there is always light. If only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”

Discovery’s Dr. Culber, Wilson Cruz, who has been an outspoken critic of President Trump, was triumphant in recognizing the efforts of those who helped Biden to victory. He tweeted, “Now, that the oaths have been taken, I want to take a moment to THANK ALL of YOU who, from day one, committed to #RESIST the evil of the last 4 years and never allowed ANY of it to be normalized. We believed in and stood up for this MULTICULTURAL DEMOCRATIC society EVERYDAY.”

George Takei, who is known for his progressive activism almost as much as for his time on Star Trek, expressed cautious optimism, and was firm on his opinion of “unity”, saying, “I believe in unity. But we must unite at a place that will move the country forward. We stand on a line marked ‘truth.’ Meet us there, and we can walk forward together.”

And Anthony Rapp, Cruz’s husband, Lt. Stamets from Discovery, looked forward to the future. He tweeted, “I’m already moved. The purging of the toxic disaster we’ve lived through for the past four years is already beginning. I have great hope that @JoeBiden & @KamalaHarris will meet this moment & not only help us heal but also help us transform our damaged nation.”

Star Trek: The Next Generation stars Jonathan Frakes, Gates McFadden and Marina Sirtis all expressed relief and emotion as the inauguration happened. Frakes said, “Finally”. McFadden said, “ahhhh. I can breathe so much better today!” And Sirtis, not known for hiding her emotions, said, “I’m not crying. You’re crying.”

Finally, Chase Masterson, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Leeta, and founder of the charity Pop Culture Hero Coalition, tweeted a message of strength for those still struggling. She said, “If a man who has been through the hardest things a person can face - loss of children, loss of a spouse - can have the resilience & empathy that Biden has, we can get through the toughest things we face, in our own hero’s journey. Whatever you are facing, you can forge through.”