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SPOILERS FOR STAR TREK: DISCOVERY<\/b><\/p>\n
TRIGGER WARNING: Rape, Sexual Assault, PTSD<\/b><\/p>\n
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Season 1, Episode 9 sees the fictional world of Star Trek Discovery give a visceral view of a real-world issue of male sexual assault and rape, as well as the after effects including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. \u00a0When I watched the episode, I was affected by flashbacks of my own past incidents of child sexual abuse, incest, and sexual assault as an adult. \u00a0I knew what direction the storyline of the character Ash Tyler (pictured above) would take, but wondered if Star Trek would fully explore the subject. \u00a0There have been mentions of sexual assault of major characters in the televised series, most noteably the Enterprise\u2019s Head of Security\u00a0Tasha Yar, in Naked Now (http:\/\/memory-alpha.wikia.com\/wiki\/The_Naked_Now_(episode)<\/a>) but we don\u2019t (thankfully) see details or flashbacks in such a vivid way.<\/p>\n In Star Trek: Discovery\u2019s\u00a0\u2018Into the Woods I go\u2019 we see the flashbacks of torture and sexual violence that Ash Tyler has survivied for 7 months. \u00a0The images are dark and upsetting, but for me the most upsetting thing was hearing him talking to another character, as he explains what happened to him, and what he did to survive.<\/p>\n \u201cI encouraged it.\u201d<\/p>\n As an adult survivor of decades of sexual abuse, the things I learned as a 3-year old stayed with me for years. \u00a0I learned how to survive in a physically, sexually and emotionally violent family. \u00a0I learned that people were more amenable and less likely to beat me if I offered sex. \u00a0I could get food or alcohol when I was strung out or starving if I offered sex. \u00a0I could be kept away from even more brutal\u00a0\u2018family friends\u2019 if I offered sex. \u00a0No child or adult should ever have to make those decisions to avoid physical pain, yet I learned those lessons so well that it became an automatic response, taking many years to even realise what I was doing.<\/p>\n Star Trek: Discovery is a fictional television show, but the responses and memories it stirred up in me were very real. \u00a0It speaks to excellent writing, photography and acting. \u00a0I hope that showing a male victim of sexual violence will show others that it can happen to anyone, regardless of gender. \u00a0Whether Ash Tyler is human or Klingon in disguise, his reactions and feelings are laid bare during this episode. \u00a0I hope it can help bring some understanding on what victims of sexual violence have to do in order to survive, and that there is no shame in these coping mechanisms. \u00a0I may have encouraged it, but no rational adult would become agree just because a child wanted sex with them. \u00a0Consent is an ongoing thing, where all parties involved have to be informed about what\u2019s involved. \u00a0A slave can\u2019t truly consent to sex with their master; neither can a prisoner consent to the same. \u00a0This goes double for children, especially when the alternative is, as it was for me, a beating, a burning, starvation or being handed off to\u00a0\u2018friend\u2019 instead.<\/p>\n I hope that the character of Ash Tyler is handled in a positive way in the rest of Season One, regardless of who he might really be. \u00a0I also hope that this episode and others will get people talking and thinking about a subject that very few even acknowledge.<\/p>\n Online support from a very good forum\u00a0<\/b>https:\/\/forums.psychcentral.co<\/a>m<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A few resources if you\u2019re in the U.K<\/b><\/p>\n The Havens (for survivors of all genders) \u00a0https:\/\/www.thehavens.org.uk<\/a><\/p>\n Survivors UK (for male survivors)\u00a0https:\/\/www.survivorsuk.org<\/a><\/p>\n A few resources if you\u2019re in the U.S<\/b><\/p>\n One in Six (for male survivors)\u00a0https:\/\/1in6.org<\/a><\/p>\n
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