In this day of quick takes, biting nicknames, and social media-fueled division, it takes a lot for just about everyone to agree on something. And usually, in a bittersweet way, that seems to happen most when a beloved entertainer passes away.
On Oct. 28, the world said goodbye to Sir Patrick Stewart, the British actor best known for his portrayals of the Star Trek captain Jean-Luc Picard and of the mutant headmaster in Fox’s (and then Disney’s) X-Men movie franchise. He left us with decades of acting legacy, characterized by his Shakespearean acumen and gravitas, to inspire and challenge us.
In the seven seasons and four movies of the original Star Trek: The Next Generation run, Stewart presented several unforgettable moments, but there’s one particular scene from the two-part episode “Chain of Command” that is instructive to us over 30 years after the episodes originally aired.
After Captain Picard is captured by enemy forces, he is subjected to physical and mental torture to draw out sensitive plans that Picard refuses to give up. In a tactic drawn straight from 1984, the interrogator turns on a set of four lights and demands that Picard say there are five lights, and every time Picard calls it as he sees it, he is inflicted with immense physical pain.
In the climactic scene moments before Picard is released back to his crew, the interrogator promises him wealth and luxuries beyond his imagination if he will just say there are five lights. Picard, on the verge of breaking, is spared by representatives taking him back to his ship. But before he leaves, he barks back defiantly, “THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS,” giving Star Trek fans a defining moment of the franchise. Back on the ship, Picard admits to the ship’s counselor that he was ready to believe there were five lights before his rescue, but we know that he held strong.
It’s a lesson that reminds us to hold fast to what is true and what is obvious, no matter the personal cost. At Alliance Defending Freedom, where I serve as vice president of litigation strategy, we’ve seen so many clients stand firm in the truth, often in the face of trendy lies, such as the ideology that claims a boy can become a girl.
Earlier this year, ADF served as co-counsel with the states of Idaho and West Virginia in their pursuit to protect their laws that keep boys out of girls’ sports. Our clients in Idaho, Madison Kenyon and Mary Kate Marshall, both lost collegiate competitions and placements to a male who competed in women’s track and field. One of our clients in West Virginia, Adaleia Cross, was subjected to sexual harassment by the young man challenging the state law that would have prevented him from displacing hundreds of girls in their sporting competitions.
Meanwhile, parents like Joe and Serena Wailes are challenging school districts that place their daughters in hotel rooms with boys who claim to be girls. There are also parents like Tammy Fournier, who fought to protect her daughter after school administrators insisted they would treat her daughter as a boy, even after she told them to stop.
It’s not just faithful parents either. Our friends at The Babylon Bee faced a very public moment when they were deplatformed from X (then known as Twitter) for posting a satirical article that called a transgender Biden administration official the winner of a “Man of the Year” award. After that episode catalyzed Elon Musk to buy X and overhaul the content restriction rules, states like California, Hawaii, and New Mexico passed laws that sought to punish the Bee for their satire, and so far, we have successfully litigated two of those three laws into obscurity.
All the while, these champions of truth stood strong in the face of ridicule or promises to make it all right if they would just comply. All of these clients defiantly replied, “There are four lights,” when the world demanded they accept the lie. I am constantly impressed and humbled by their bravery. May we all find inspiration by their courage and hope, knowing that standing for the truth always wins out in the end.