The actor Patrick Stewart has caused a stir by claiming that Professor Charles Xavier, who he plays in the X-Men franchise, and Jean-Luc Picard, his Star Trek character, would have both voted to stay in the European Union. In many ways, this is unremarkable: Xavier and Picard both score heavily for pro-Remain leanings from a demographic perspective: degree-educated, opposed to the death penalty, socially liberal, with only the question mark over Xavier’s age bracket making it semi-plausible that Professor X would have backed a Leave vote. But what of Star Trek‘s major players? Who would they be in the European debate?
Klingons
Formerly belligerent military power seeking new ways to assert self in multipolar world/galaxy. But longterm cultural and political trends mean that they are at best unhappy and difficult partners in their on-again, off-again relationship with the United Federation of Planets. They are the United Kingdom.
Ferengi
Hyper-capitalist social conservatives who are de facto but not de jure members of the Federation, while remaining neutral in major conflicts: Switzerland.
Vulcans
Founder-members of the Federation who are all too aware of our shared capacity for brutality outside of multilateral organisations: Germany.
Romulans
They have a shared history with the Vulcans, but they are a lot more belligerent in the present day: their relationship with their near neighbours defines much of galactic politics: France.
Bajorans
Plucky newcomers chafing at the Federation’s regulation, nonetheless aware that Federation membership is the only way to avoid falling back into the embrace of their other, less friendly, neighbourhood hegemon: Lithuania.
Cardassians
A formerly formidable foe of the local hegemon, aka the United Federation of Planets, who, in lieu of a direct military engagement, choose to exploit the holes in the rules-based order into to re-establish their control over their immediate neighbourhood/star system. They are, of course, Russia.
Federation
Globalising engine for peace and prosperity based on a rules-based global order. The European Union, as seen by Remainers.
Borg
Relentless agents of assimilation, grinding down all difference and making everyone else exactly like them. The European Union, as seen by Leavers.
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