"By late 2024, the twenty square blocks that made up Sanctuary District A had become overcrowded slums.
With the records of people inside the Sanctuaries not uploaded to the planetary computer network (and therefore not accessible using an Interface), the true conditions inside were unknown to the general public. American society believed that, despite the political upheaval affecting Europe at the time, the United States was stable and had found a way to successfully deal with the social problems that had been the genesis of the Sanctuaries.
An "out of sight, out of mind" mentality had set in.
People in the district started to believe that their needs were forgotten."
Inter-War Pre-Warp Earth History
UFP Archive,
Memory Alpha
[Street]
(Sisko is lying on the floor being prodded with a weapon.)
VIN:
Okay buddy, come on,
rise and shine. Come on.
Well, look what we have here.
SISKO:
Who are you?
VIN:
Who am I? Do you believe this?
Sleeping Beauty's asking me questions. Up.
BERNARDO:
Hey Vin, we've been working all night,
why don't we forget these guys?
I just want to go home and see Sonya
and the kids and get some sleep.
VIN:
What are you, an anarchist?
There's A Law against sleeping in the streets.
Though I do like the matching pajamas.
All right, let's see some logo.
SISKO:
Logo?
VIN:
ID. Identification.
UHC Card?
Transit pass?
BASHIR:
Where are we?
What happened to Starfleet Headquarters?
VIN:
Oh, perfect. Just what we need.
Two more dims.
SISKO:
Those shotguns and uniforms.
There's something very familiar about this.
VIN:
Yeah, probably from the last time you were
in a Sanctuary District.
SISKO:
Sanctuary District?
What year is this?
BERNARDO:
Same year as it was yesterday.
2024. Let's go.
VIN:
How do they find us?
We pan down the Trans Bay tube 2 subway steps to an unconscious Dax,
who still has her comm. badge
unlike Sisko and Bashir.
After the opening titles,
she is woken by a passerby.
CHRIS:
Are you okay?
DAX:
Oh, my head.
CHRIS:
What happened?
Did you get jacked or something?
DAX:
Jacked?
CHRIS:
You know, robbed?
Did they get your credit chips, your ID?
DAX:
It looks like they got everything --
Except my brooch.
CHRIS:
Do you live near here?
Can you get home?
DAX:
I was travelling with some friends
and I guess we got separated.
CHRIS:
Well, you shouldn't be
walking around without ID.
You'd better order some replacements.
You can use my Interface terminal if you wish.
My office is just round the corner.
DAX:
That's very kind of you.
CHRIS:
Chris. Chris Brynner.
DAX:
Jadzia.
CHRIS:
That's a pretty name.
What is that, Dutch?
DAX:
Something like that.
It's very kind of you to help me.
CHRIS:
Oh, don't mention it.
It's not everyday that I get to rescue a damsel in distress.
Let me help you.
[Street]
CHRIS:
It's just this way.
(Up the steps to 599 wherever, just across from Candystick something.)
[Sanctuary District Street]
(Basically, it's a slum.)
BASHIR:
What is this place?
SISKO:
A Sanctuary District.
BASHIR:
Twenty first century history is not one of my strong points.
Too depressing.
SISKO:
It's been a hobby of mine.
They made some ugly mistakes, but they also paved the way for a lot of the things we take now for granted.
BASHIR:
I assume this is one of those mistakes.
SISKO:
A bad one. By the early twenty twenties there was a place like this in every major city in the United States.
BASHIR:
Why are these people in here? Are they criminals?
SISKO:
No. People with criminal records weren't allowed in the Sanctuary Districts.
BASHIR:
Then what did they do to deserve this?
SISKO:
Nothing. They're just people without jobs or places to live.
BASHIR:
So they get put in here?
SISKO:
Welcome to the twenty first century, Doctor.
VIN:
Hold it right there. (to Bernardo)
If you want to go home, go home. What do I care?
BERNARDO:
Thanks, Vin.
VIN:
Shall we?
[Chris's office]
(Meanwhile, Dax is seeing how the other half live, using a pointer on a touchscreen.)
CHRIS:
Hi. Sorry to keep you waiting.
Were you able to order new ID?
DAX:
Just finished.
It took me a while to convince them I was who I said I was.
They'll be expressing a transit pass and a couple of credit chips in a few hours.
I asked them to send it here. I hope you don't mind.
CHRIS:
No problem.
DAX:
Thanks for letting me use your terminal and your account.
CHRIS:
Glad I could help. You know, those are very unusual.
DAX:
Oh, you mean my tattoos.
CHRIS:
It's amazing work.
Where did you have them done, Japan?
DAX:
How did you guess?
CHRIS:
Well, I used to have one myself.
A Maori tribal pattern used to go all the way down my arm.
Got it in high school back in the nineties just like everybody else.
Of course, I had to have it removed.
Well, you know how it is.
To get the Government contracts, you have to look like all the rest of the drones.
So I guess that makes me a sell-out.
DAX:
Not necessarily.
What kind of business do you do?
CHRIS:
You don't know?
Well, I guess I'll have to have a talk to my public relations people.
I'm Chris Brynner. Brynner Information Systems?
You know, Interface Operations, Net Access, Channel Ninety.
DAX:
That Chris Brynner!
CHRIS:
So what do you think?
Does that make me a sell-out or not?
DAX:
Probably, but I won't hold it against you.
CHRIS:
These friends of yours that you told me about.
Is there any way for you to get a hold of them?
DAX:
I wish I could.
[Processing Centre]
(Sisko is having his palm prints scanned and picture taken.)
VIN:
Left hand. Other hand.
Look straight ahead.
Now stand over here.
INTERFACE:
Welcome to SafeTech's fingerprint database.
Your government discount has been accepted.
Remember our new retinal scan services, now accessible on channel one seventy eight.
VIN:
Yeah, yeah. Save the commercial.
INTERFACE:
We are sorry but the fingerprints you have provided are not on record.
VIN:
No ID, no fingerprint record, no Interface account. It's like you two don't exist.
BASHIR:
Since we don't exist, why not let us go?
VIN:
Yeah, well, let's see.
You don't have any ID, you don't have any money, and you're both dressed like clowns.
You figure it out.
(Vin gives them clipboards with forms)
VIN:
Please fill out these forms. Answer all questions to the best of your ability.
If you cannot speak English an interpreter will be provided.
If you cannot read, questions will be given to you verbally.
If there is any part of this form you do not understand, ask one of our staff for assistance.
Now sit down, shut up, and fill out the forms.
And if you've got any problems, don't come to me with them.
BASHIR:
Thank you very much.
 |
| Known as the Father of Earth's Post-Modern Reformism, Bell galvanized the people and government of the United States of America when he led an uprising in San Francisco's Sanctuary District "A." Besides arranging for food and medical supplies for the hostages, Bell was able to establish a wide broadcast data link through the planetary communications system, "Interface." Through this broadcast, residents of Sanctuary District talk of their day-to-day struggle to survive. Bell was [...] by National Guard troops as they attempted to reach the hostages. |
[Processing Centre]
(A man is doodling on Sisko's trouser leg. When Sisko stops him, he turns to the hand of the woman on the other side.)
BASHIR:
This is ridiculous.
I mean, we've been here three hours and the line has barely moved at all.
VIN:
I got one word for you, pal.
Plenty of overtime.
BASHIR:
That's three words.
VIN:
Hey, for a dim, you're pretty smart.
Now go back and take a seat. Oh boy.
(A calendar on the wall says today is Friday 8/30/24, temperature 15 degrees, and Sisko is thinking.)
BASHIR: Some of these people are mentally ill. They need proper medical treatment.
SISKO: I know, but they're not going to get it. Not now anyway.
BASHIR: What? What is it?
SISKO: That calendar over there. It says August thirtieth, twenty twenty four.
BASHIR: I'm not sure I understand.
SISKO: You ever hear of the Bell Riots?
BASHIR: Vaguely.
SISKO: It was one of the most violent civil disturbances in American history, and it happened right here. San Francisco, Sanctuary District A, the first week of September, twenty twenty four.
BASHIR: That's only a few days from now.
SISKO: Which means if we don't get out of here soon, we'll be caught right in the middle of it.
BASHIR: Just how bad are these riots going to be, Commander?
SISKO: Bad. The Sanctuary residents will take over the District. Some of the guards will be taken hostage. The government will send in troops to restore order. Hundreds of Sanctuary residents will be killed.
BASHIR:
Hundreds? And there's nothing we can do to prevent it. Starfleet's temporal displacement policy may sound good in the classroom, but to know that hundreds of people are going to die and to not be able to do a thing to save them
SISKO:
I sympathise, Doctor, but if it will make you feel any better, the Riots will be one of the watershed events of the twenty first century.
Gabriel Bell will see to that.
BASHIR:
Bell?
SISKO:
The man they named the Riots after.
He is one of the Sanctuary residents who will be guarding the hostages.
The Government troops will storm this place based on rumours that the hostages have been killed.
It turns out that the hostages were never harmed, because of Gabriel Bell.
In the end, Bell sacrifices his own life to save them.
He'll become a National Hero.
Outrage over his death, and the death of the other residents, will change public opinion about the Sanctuaries.
They'll be torn down and the United States will finally begin correcting the social problems it had struggled with for over a hundred years.
BASHIR:
And all of this is going to happen in the next few days.
SISKO:
Which means if we warn these people about what's coming, if we try to help them in any way, we risk altering a pivotal moment in history.
And we can't let that happen.
VIN:
Hey, I hate to break up your intimate conversation, but you're next.
[Processing Centre - Cubicle]
SISKO:
Is there something wrong?
LEE: (a woman)
Well, according to these forms, you're supposed to be dims.
But you're not, are you?
SISKO:
I hope you're not disappointed.
LEE:
Pleasantly surprised is more like it.
I guess I owe you an apology.
If I'd known you were gimmies, I could've processed your application much sooner.
BASHIR:
Gimmies?
SISKO:
They're American slang terms.
LEE:
I try not to use them, but it's a bad habit.
Gimmies are people like you. People who are looking for help, a job, a place to live.
BASHIR:
And what about the dims?
Don't they need help?
LEE:
The dims should be in hospitals, but the government can't afford to keep them there, so we get them instead.
I hate it, but that's the way it is.
I see here that you both have just arrived in San Francisco.
Do you have any jobs lined up?
BASHIR:
No. Actually we weren't planning on staying here very long.
LEE: Have you got a place to stay or anyone who can vouch for you?
SISKO:
No. We were travelling with a friend but we were separated right after we arrived.
LEE:
Do you have any way of contacting this friend of yours?
SISKO: Not at the moment.
LEE:
Well, in that case, I'm afraid you're going have to stay here in the Sanctuary for the time being.
BASHIR:
You mean we can't leave?
LEE:
It's for your own safety.
SISKO:
Really.
LEE:
And it's the law.
SISKO:
What about jobs?
How are we supposed to find a place to work and somewhere to live if we're stuck in here?
LEE: One of the services we provide is job placement.
SISKO: And how long's that usually take?
LEE:
I wish I could give you a definite answer, but jobs are hard to come by right now, what with the economy and all.
My advice is to be patient.
In the meantime, take these. (cards) They're your ration cards.
You can use them to get food and water at any of the distribution points in the district. Hang on to them.
BASHIR:
Where are we supposed to stay while we're here?
LEE:
Anywhere you like.
The buildings in the district are there for everyone to use.
SISKO:
Thanks for your help.
LEE:
One more thing. A little advice.
Stay away from District Security. They've had their budget cut again.
They're overworked and underpaid. Just give them a lot of space.
And watch out for ghosts.
BASHIR:
Ghosts?
LEE: That's what we call people who haven't integrated well into the Sanctuary. They can be dangerous, and they tend to prey on other residents.
SISKO:
Thanks for the warning. We'll stay away from them.
Ira Behr also states that there is a subtle examination of racism in this episode.
When Dax is discovered, she is treated like royalty, but when Sisko and Bashir are found, they are treated like criminals.
Of this situation, Behr says
"the simple fact is that a beautiful white woman is always going to get much better treatment than two brown-skinned men."
(It's party time and Dax has been shopping. The place looks very like Ten Forward, right down to the steps and windows.)
WOMAN:
We had to cancel our trip to the Alps this year because of the student protests in France.
CHRIS: I thought the Neo-Trotskyists were going to put a stop to that.
WOMAN:
They're not having any more luck that the Gaullists did.
MAN:
Europe is falling apart.
WOMAN:
Well, at least we don't have to worry about that kind of thing here.
DAX:
Don't count on it.
CHRIS:
You'll have to excuse Jadzia's cynicism.
She was just mugged yesterday.
That kind of thing's bound to give a negative impression of the future.
WOMAN:
So, who mugged you? Did you see them?
DAX:
It doesn't really matter. I'm just glad that I wasn't hurt.
CHRIS:
Well, whoever it was did a very thorough job.
They took everything she had, even her ID.
DAX:
Chris rescued me and let me use his computer to get my replacement ID.
MAN:
You're lucky the police didn't find you first.
If they'd caught you on the street without ID, you might have ended up in a Sanctuary District.
WOMAN:
I thought they stopped doing that.
MAN:
Why would they? It's the only way to keep those people off the streets.
DAX:
Excuse us a minute.
(Dax and Chris move away.)
DAX:
Is that true?
CHRIS:
Is what true?
DAX:
About taking people without ID to a Sanctuary District.
CHRIS:
Yes, it is. Why?
DAX:
I still haven't found my friends.
CHRIS:
And you think they might be in a Sanctuary District?
DAX:
It's possible.
If you hadn't found me, I might've wound up in one.
Can we check and see if they're inside?
CHRIS:
Well, that might take some doing.
The Sanctuary District records are not posted on the Net.
But I might be able to pull in some favours.
