Episode 2.22 - The Queering of Deep Space (Wilson Cruz)

It easy to have an extreme crush on Wilson Cruz. Not only is he smart, thoughtful and a shining example of queer pride, he is one of the Grand Marshalls of NYC Pride this year. They’re big shoes to fill, but he takes it all in stride, as he does his role as Dr. Hugh Culber on Paramount+’s Star Trek: Discovery. On this week’s episode of Why Here, Wilson shares his take on queer representation in outer space (and on American TV since the 90s) and he explains what it was like being a young Puerto Rican man exploring Latino culture in California. At the end, Star Trek co-star and former RENT co-star Anthony Rapp joins the chat for a “fact check.” It’s all funny and smart, but WARNING, there are tears too!  

Om Podcasten

A liberal arts degree guarantees you nothing, besides a sense of entitlement and the nerve to think that you could somehow start a critically acclaimed podcast. Enter Why Here, a show independently produced and hosted by Tristan McAllister and Benton Whitley, two millennials and constant over thinkers who have spent their adult lives learning how little they actually know about the world around them. What manifests is a narrative as much about origin as it is about finding a destination. Through cultural commentary and interviews with friends and strangers the two uncover the complicated and inspiring stories that led us all here.