Nov
3

Is Star Wars Supposed to Be Ideologically Progressive?

“I’ll never turn to the dark side. You have failed, your highness.” — Luke Skywalker

So-called “progressives” these days tend to see everything through a progressive lens. (That’s an optometry pun, by the way.) When they aren’t declaring innocent things (e.g., PBJ sandwiches) as racist or feminist or Nazi or whatever, they are claiming decades-old entertainment franchises (sometimes mislabeled as “fandoms”) for themselves. Case in point, California Congressman Robert Garcia (D) recently posted the following to X/Twitter:

“Superman is about immigration. X-Men is about diversity and civil rights. Star Wars is about fighting facism [sic]. Star Trek is about equality. If you enjoy these fandoms you are inherently reading progressive stories. The good guys always fight nazis and billionaire villians [sic].”

What he didn’t count on was a response from Adam Bray, a professional journalist and author who has written or co-written several Star Wars encyclopedias and other such guides on the franchise. As such, he has delved quite deeply into not only the characters, themes, etc., of Star Wars but also into its inception and the main man behind it all, George Lucas. Here is what Bray had to say about Garcia’s claims:

“I’ve written for Star Wars so I’ll take that one and leave the others for someone else invested in them.

The George Lucas that wrote Star Wars was not a 2024 Progressive. He was a 1960s anti-establishment liberal. Those are entirely different, contradictory ideals. He was against big corporations, big Pharma and Wall Street, against invading foreign countries with our military, he was pro free-speech & anti-censorship… and thus he was basically against everything the Democrat Party of today now stands for. These ideals were baked into Star Wars.

George Lucas believed in forgiveness and redemption for all who seek it, as seen in Luke & Vader’s relationship. Democrats of today believe in canceling people and destroying their lives for even the smallest statements on social media that violate the sacred woke code. Yoda said “Size Matters Not.” He taught that character matters, not your appearance. But woke Democrats of today, in contrast, value demographics like skin color, gender and sexual choices above all else. Progressives gate-keep and “other” people, shutting them out of conversations and opportunities with their racist DEI.

Author Adam Bray & friend

The Rebels of Star Wars fought against a regime that controlled the mainstream press. The Empire controlled the official narratives and they censored all objections. They conspired with corporations to silence all criticism. They weaponized the legal system against anyone that stood in their way. The Empire controlled all the large corporations. They owned the military industrial complex. They dominated and dictated every aspect of the culture. In this way the Democrat party of today embodies everything the Empire of Star Wars stood for.

The Republicans, Conservatives and supporters of Trump stand against the all-powerful establishment ruling every aspect of this country now. They are now the mavericks. The Republicans now embody the ideals of the Rebels of George Lucas’s Star Wars.”

That was an epic (yet quite civil) takedown! It is just a reminder of how much Lucasfilm has changed under Disney, as Kathleen Kennedy keeps shepherding more SW projects with prevalent “woke” messages and “representation”. It is both saddening and infuriating.

As he engaged with some nasty commenters, Bray continued:

“[Y]ou’ve got to study the history of the subject to understand the author and the intent. In the case of George Lucas, it’s actually more clear-cut. Because a progressive like Garcia making this statement is separated from the Star Wars of George Lucas by nearly 50 years. The Progressivism of today simply didn’t exist in the 1970s. So his statement, which is a commonly repeated misinterpretation of Star Wars, just doesn’t compute….

Everything you describe is what Kamala and the Progressives have done over the past 4 years. And Obama before them. Entertainment is fun but it’s good if you follow along with current events too.”

There is more of this if you care to read the full article by Aaron Walker. Walker also adds responses of his own regarding Superman, Star Trek, and the X-Men. He makes some pretty good points, though the claim of Lt. Uhura being “third in charge” on Kirk’s Enterprise is debatable. The issue of what Gene Roddenberry wanted to be included in Star Trek versus what he was able to get away with in that era — however socially “progressive” it may have been — certainly bears further discussion, especially given Roddenberry’s Leftist leanings. But, that’s beyond the scope, here.

Have a great week, everyone, and don’t forget to vote!