Primitive Culture is a Trek.fm podcast dedicated to a deep examination of the connections between Star Trek and our own history and culture. In each episode, Duncan Barrett and his guests take you on a fascinating exploration of how our world inspires the franchise we love—and how that franchise inspires us.
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episode 25: The Bravery of Hope
Anne Frank and Counterpoint.
Perhaps more than for any other Star Trek series, the shadow of the Holocaust loomed large over Voyager. So, it’s not surprising that, when the time came to pitch a story about alien refugees using the Starfleet vessel as a way to escape persecution, The Diary of Anne Frank was a key touchstone. The resulting episode, “Counterpoint,” remains both a fan favorite and the personal number-one of Captain Janeway herself, Kate Mulgrew.
In this episode of Primitive Culture, hosts Clara Cook and Duncan Barrett look into the genesis of this popular Voyager episode, teasing out some of the parallels between its story and Frank’s diary. We consider the ways in which Voyager—and Star Trek in general—engages with the painful legacy of genocide, and the Holocaust in particular. We also look at Starfleet’s approach to aid and asylum, and consider the role of humanitarian resistance against oppressive regimes in the real world.
Chapters
Intro (00:00:00)
Space Nazis (00:06:10)
The Diary of Anne Frank (00:17:15)
Genocide, Refugees, and Asylum (00:32:20)
Humanitarian Resistance (00:56:40)
Final Thoughts (01:14:20)
Hosts
Clara Cook and Duncan Barrett
Production
Clara Cook (Editor) Duncan Barrett (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Amy Nelson (Associate Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager)