If You Were in Monica's Gang...Which Star Trek Muppet Would You Be? A Few Scattered Reflections on Representation

A Brazilian student studying in one of my first English classes ever, back in Boston, introduced me to Turma da Monica by drawing the character Bidu on the board during the break. I had recently started studying Portuguese, and I immediately fell in love with the cartoon. Over the years, I would watch animated episodes on You Tube from the U.S. and collect comic books when I visited Brazil. Turma da Monica (or "Monica's Gang") is a creation of Mauricio de Sousa, who is sometimes seen as a Brazilian Walt Disney. His characters, the main ones modeled after his own children, have often reminded me of Charles Shultz's Peanuts.

One time I took a silly online quiz to find out which Monica character I would be, and the answer was Marina, the artist. No big surprise, I guess, although I'm realizing I have a lot in common with Do Contra, who does the complete opposite of expected behavior. I may have something in common with Cebolinha, too, with his crazy plans.

It's also no surprise that my husband, a true caipira (country bumpkin--but it sounds better in Portuguese!) would be Chico Bento. I drew the two of us as Monica characters for our wedding. But as I started collecting the figurines, sold by local magazine stands, I realized he also has a lot in common with the soccer player Jeremias, and also with the Native American, Papa-Capim, with his relationship to nature, likely passed down from indigenous roots in his family.

In recent years, though, and especially after collecting some of the figures, I've become a little saddened that the majority of Monica's gang are white, even though Turma da Monica is a unique Brazilian cartoon, and Brazil is a beautiful mix of color. Sure, there are a few characters of color, but I feel they are also stereotypes, as if Jeremias were the "token black" kid, and Papa-Capim truly represented indigenous cultures. I admire that in recent years, Monica's Gang has included a blind character and a kid in a wheelchair. I also truly love the stories and how, especially in the Teen versions, where the gang grows up and encounters different challenges, that readers are gently taught lessons about respect and being a good citizen of the planet. Even so, and I ask myself the same thing in my own art, if white is the "default" color, and people of color and different abilities are added as a special "extra," what does that say to young readers and viewers? That they are extraneous and inessential, a side-kick or cameo appearance, but never the main protagonist?

I grew up on Star Trek, and even though there are plenty of white folks like me, I never really identified with any of the characters. In recent months, though, I've gotten into the newer series, both Enterprise and Discovery. In some ways I found myself relating to the character Hoshi Sato, the linguist. Even though I'm by no means a linguist, I do have an affinity toward language learning, and I appreciate how she is not always courageous and confident, but sometimes claustrophobic and prone to breakdowns. And yet, she is a valuable member of the crew, offering unique solutions to problems never encountered previously. Then there's Ensign Tilly. She's super awkward, slightly annoying, and also not the typical petite size of most Star Trek women. In other words, she's perfect! And if someone like her can sit in the captain's chair (albeit in a parallel universe), then maybe there's a place for me in Starfleet after all.

Among other silly quizzes I've taken online are which Star Trek race I would be, and also which Muppet I would be. So it turns out I'm Bajoran. And Janice, the hippie. Somehow it makes sense. Bajorans have a lot of culture, a spiritual background, and yet have a complicated relationship with their homeland--them due to Cardassian invasion, me due to moving away, and also being an odd fit when I was there (perhaps due to the Kardashian invasion, among other things). And Janice, groovy, chill, a fan of organic food and a guitarist, seems like the me I want to be. So, I put the two together in a drawing, which is also my Facebook profile picture. It's fun to see this version of myself.

I'm speaking from a place of extreme privilege, though. I've always seen characters like me in stories. Even the animated cartoon animals I always watched brought a "white" culture, and I never felt like I had to adjust myself or work to see things through a different lens, like many folks do.

I commend shows that make efforts, however big or small, to include all types of people. In Discovery, there is a gay couple, just living their lives, brushing their teeth (and dealing with Klingons). The original Star Trek, as cheesy and white-American-centered as it is, brought what is known as the first interracial kiss on television in the 1960's. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. actually told Nichelle Nichols, the iconic Lieutenant Uhura, to stay in the series when she was thinking about quitting to pursue singing. He realized that she was playing a much-needed role--a black woman who wasn't a house cleaner or nanny, but a respected Starfleet officer.

Representation matters, in our media, in our classrooms, and in our conversations as well. Even in a class or community that may be mostly white, straight, cis-gendered. I think about this when I choose photos for slides or a Kahoot game for my classes, or names for example grammatical sentences. When talking about a text and students refer to the author as "he," not knowing the gender, I gently challenge that assumption. Over the past year, I've worked hard to eliminate my use of gendered language, dropping "guys," and "ladies," for "people," and "folks." I try to make classroom for all kinds of different stories, as a simple way of letting people say, "I'm here, too. My voice matters." I certainly don't do this perfectly; I have a lot to learn, and I'm grateful for the ELT community I have here that encourages me to think critically about what I do.

I'm working on a writing project for a series of English language books that involve the Maker Movement, and I absolutely adore how these books put people of color (women, too!) in important roles, such as scientists, and have disabled children playing on the playground, asking to take their turn. They come with a mascot for kids to color as they wish, so that, hopefully, they can see themselves in the book, and know that they, too, can learn English by making things and being a part of the larger community.

The artist Tyler Feder did the recent #Inktober challenge by re-drawing classic movie scenes with more diverse characters. She did something similar with famous works of art last year, and she is a constant role model for me and my work, challenging me to think beyond my white, East-Coast United States mindset, to my include neighbors, listen to them, and use the power I have to let them speak.

What are some groups that are underrepresented in our society? How can we make them visible and give them a place of honor? Are you part of Turma da Monica? And, I really want to know, which Star Trek Muppet would you be?