The lovely Nana Visitor recently talked with ScreenRant about her time on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, her character Kira Nerys, and how she believes the major/colonel's storyline has left a lasting legacy for other franchise characters and young women everywhere. Visitor, who played the Bajoran for all seven seasons of the show, has a great deal to say about gender, influence, and how the women of Star Trek have always empowered the next generation.
During her recent interview, Visitor said of her character's legacy and today's women characters like Star Trek: Discovery's Michael Burnham: "I'm so proud to think that we were shoulders that these young women could stand on. I love that. There's that story, and I say it in the book, of the butterflies."
Visitor continued by saying:
"We used to think that the migration of butterflies was one generation going from Canada to Mexico, and we recently found out that's simply not true. There are many generations that stop in different places, until finally the last generation gets to its intended destination. And I feel like that is true for us. You know, we got a certain distance so that the next ones could get further."
When Star Trek: The Next Generation came along in 1987, empowered women characters like Lt. Tasha Yar, Dr. Beverly Crusher, and Counsellor Deanna Troi continued this legacy; however, only to a degree. Their storylines were arguably limited to romantic arcs, and a good many plots didn't exactly pass the Bechdel test (and Lwaxana Troi especially deserved better). Then Deep Space Nine premiered in 1993, and it was indeed a game changer regarding the role of women in the Star Trek franchise.
The legacy of Kira Nerys
Kira grew up on Bajor during the Cardassian occupation, mostly in a refugee camp. Kira was told her mother died because she was too young to understand the truth about Terok Nor (later known as Deep Space 9) and the Cardassian need for "comfort women." Violence, death, and sickness ran rampant in the refugee camps, and it forged Kira's strength as she spent years of her adult life fighting the occupation with other Bajoran liberation groups. She's uncompromising, brave, and loves her planet and people.
As more Star Trek series enter development and the franchise expands, future women characters will definitely owe a boon to Kira Nerys and her legacy of courage, strength, and heart. Share your thoughts and comments on the character's powerful legacy with us via the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages.