OUT January/February 2022

When I was a kid, my dad and I never missed an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. I was fascinated by the adventures of the U.S.S. Enterprise’s diverse, weird, and wondrous crew of future beings seeking, as Captain Jean-Luc Picard explained in the opening credits, “to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.” Cue the horns. I was inspired by Star Trek’s noble mission. (And I may have had a baby crush on actor Wil Wheaton.) More than that, however, Star Trek was a show that both I, in my budding queerness, and my father could enjoy together. No matter our differences, we bonded for one hour each weekend over our shared love of space…

NTVS Streetwear fave NTVS offers modern tees from Native artists like Steven Paul Judd, whose “Not for Sale” design is stenciled over an old ad used to sell Indigenous land. ($30) TheNTVS.com Courtesy NTVS LESLEY HAMPTON This Native designer raises awareness of issues like body positivity through fashion. Skilled at athleisure wear, she also excels at dresses, pantsuits, and skirts like this one. (prices vary) LesleyHampton.com Photo Billie Chiasson MANITOBAH MUKLUKS Alaska Natives live in Mukluks, and Native-owned Manitobah makes the best. Walk on ice with the glacier grip pads on this Tamarack pair designed by Jamie Okuma. ($360) Manitobah.com Courtesy Manitobah Mukluks EMME STUDIO Korina Emmerich’s newest Drugstore Rodeo collection features ungendered clothing and fluid models, including Isaia Halan in this grey Canarsee coat. Jewelry from Indigenous artist Tania Larsson. ($1,500) EmmeStudios.com Photo Two Hawks GINEW Owned by…

On Puerto Vallarta’s Lázaro Cárdenas — a cobblestoned street lined with the Mexican city’s gay bars — men embraced as if World War II were just won. Bright rainbow banners unfurled overhead. The sun shone brilliantly above a sea sparkling like freshly uncorked Dom Pérignon. It was Vallarta Pride 2021 in May. Vaccines had been rolled out, and P.V. was hosting one of the world’s first major Pride celebrations. The clouds — in the form of COVID variants — had yet to roll in, and in that moment, an unbridled happiness swept the city. Life was resuming, and so too could queer joy. While the realities of the pandemic have somewhat dampened this rosy outlook, Puerto Vallarta remains an oasis of this exultation. LGBTQ+ tourists from around the world flock to this…

For years, I’ve harbored the dream — or, really, the fantasy — of what it would be like to float in zero gravity and look out the window to realize I’m more among the stars than beneath them. In December, traveling to space with my father and four other individuals, that dream came true. While those precious minutes in space had a profound effect on me, I hope many others who relate to me will feel like they are sharing the spotlight with me. Through a lot of self-exploration, I came to the conclusion that I’m pansexual, which means I’m attracted to people without discrimination in terms of gender identity. I also discovered a love for other niche communities, most notably the furry community, which unites people who have an appreciation…

When viewers first met Star Trek: Discovery’s Commander Jett Reno on the Starfleet Federation starship U.S.S. Hiawatha, she’d been alone for 10 months keeping her wounded crewmates alive amid a war she didn’t know had ended. At first, it may have appeared as though Reno, a resourceful engineer with duct tape and one-liners at the ready, was just comic relief. But there’s a scene early on when the character, played by Tig Notaro with her signature deadpan delivery, telegraphs her depth. Heartrending openness, hope, and relief flash across Reno’s face when she realizes that not only is the war with the Klingons over, but her side has won. The through line from gravity to comedy is one Notaro, who famously did a set announcing her breast cancer diagnosis in 2012, has…

Of all the challenges that have rocked the crew in season 4 of the Paramount+ streaming series Star Trek: Discovery — from fighting cataclysmic forces to forging alien alliances — one new development resonates with actor Blu del Barrio as well as their LGBTQ+ fans and allies above all others. “I think chosen family is the big one,” says del Barrio in a recent joint Zoom interview with their costar Ian Alexander. Although the 55-year-old science-fiction franchise has never before featured recurring characters who are trans, del Barrio believes Discovery is taking that concept to a queerer version of the final frontier. “I think in terms of the LGBTQ+ community and this franchise as a whole,” says del Barrio, “even if there weren’t ‘canon’ queer or trans characters everywhere and spread throughout,…