Privilege Is Not an Accomplishment

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You’re gonna hear Emily Ratajkowski roar over the Blue Origin space launch.

In case you missed it: A groundbreaking flight took place on April 14, led by an all-female crew consisting of Katy Perry, Gayle King, and Lauren Sanchez (fiancée of Jeff Bezos, former Amazon CEO). This mission aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard sub-orbital vehicle was significant but stirred controversy among the supermodel.

Currently, Emily is articulating her feelings about the spaceflight, making it clear that her distaste was primarily directed towards Jeff, who’s involved with the development of spacecraft for tourism through his Blue Origin company, rather than the female participants in the mission.

While having an all-female team in space exploration might seem like advancement for women in science, Emily stated on her April 15 TikTok that a wealthy man choosing to bring his girlfriend and some well-known females into space for space tourism doesn’t equate to real progress.

I find myself compelled to express this: It’s evident that we reside within an oligarchy, where only a select few, captivated by the prospect of extending their existence, venture into space. Meanwhile, the vast majority of Earth’s inhabitants grapple with everyday concerns such as paying rent and ensuring meals for their children.

In response to a critique she found on TikTok regarding space travel, Emily made the point that “achieving privilege doesn’t equate to personal achievement.

She went on to say, “Using your advantage doesn’t make a trip to space for 11 minutes an achievement.

As a lifestyle expert, I’d like to emphasize the importance of recognizing genuine advancements. Yesterday’s events fell far short of true progress.

 

However, contrary to that perspective, the team aboard the New Shepard did not express such sentiments. Upon its descent back to Earth, Katy shared with reporters about the mission, “It’s all about creating opportunities for future women in space.

The “Roar” singer continued, “This is all for the benefit of Earth.”

As a lifestyle expert, I’d put it this way: It was an unbelievable, surreal experience for me, Aisha Bowe – once a NASA rocket scientist and now a space traveler – to finally see my lifelong dream of venturing into the cosmos become a reality.

Upon reaching the spot and standing up, we all shared a glance, and in that instant, something extraordinary happened among us – a truly magical moment that left us awestruck,” she reminisced.

For more details on the Blue Origin spaceflight, keep reading…

Established in 2000 by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin functions as a private space enterprise headquartered in Kent, Washington. As stated on their official site, this organization seeks to harness the resources of space for Earth’s benefit and extend human presence beyond our planet by improving transportation methods and developing habitable destinations in low Earth orbit.

Blue Origin is working towards these objectives by constructing reusable rockets and engines, with the aim of lowering the expense of space travel, making it more affordable to the general public, and promoting sustainability. During a 2016 Pathfinder Awards talk, Bezos expressed their vision as “millions of people living and working in space.” He also emphasized their focus on reducing the cost of space travel by prioritizing reusability.

However, if you’re curious about the price for a seat on a Blue Origin flight, you won’t find it listed on their website. What they do mention is that a $150,000 deposit is required.

The rocket system called New Shepard, named after astronaut Alan Shepard, who made history by being the first American in space in 1961, is what Blue Origin refers to as a “completely reusable, suborbital rocket designed for human travel.”

This vehicle has room for six individuals in its pressurized crew capsule. However, unlike traditional spacecraft, there’s no pilot seat because the vehicle is fully autonomous – it operates without pilots.

New Shepard initially took flight in 2015 as part of a test program consisting of 16 successful tests, which were completed in 2021.

In July of that year, New Shepard embarked on its first human flight with none other than Jeff Bezos and his brother Mark participating, along with an auction winner who paid a staggering $28 million for the opportunity. Later that year, William Shatner and Michael Strahan also joined the list of travelers aboard this vehicle (though they were part of different missions).

The upcoming mission will be New Shepard’s 31st overall (hence the name NS-31) and its 11th human flight.

The New Shepard mission (NS-31) by Blue Origin is scheduled for takeoff from Launch Site One, nestled among the Guadalupe Mountain range in the West Texas desert, on April 14. According to their website, the launch window begins at 8:30 a.m., Central Daylight Time (CDT).

As a space enthusiast, I’m excited to share my anticipated journey with Blue Origin’s New Shepard. According to their website, we’ll blast off at over three times the speed of sound, reaching heights more than 100 kilometers above Earth – beyond the Kármán line, the internationally recognized boundary of space. Once there, we’ll unfasten our harnesses to experience weightlessness and take in breathtaking views of our beautiful planet. After about 11 minutes, we’ll gracefully descend under parachutes, ready to embark on this incredible experience again.

 

The team for mission NS-31 comprises pop singer Katy Perry, television host Gayle King from CBS Mornings, film producer Kerianne Flynn, Aisha Bowe who founded STEMBoard and previously worked as a NASA rocket scientist, bioastronautics researcher and activist Amanda Nguyen, and former TV anchor Lauren Sanchez (who is engaged to Bezos). Notably, this marks the first all-female space travel crew since 1963, when Valentina Tereshkova of the Soviet Union embarked on a solo mission, making her the first woman ever to journey into space.

Nguyen will be creating history as the first Vietnamese woman to travel in space, and Bowe is set to become the first person of Bahamian descent to venture where few have gone before.

As an ardent admirer, I’m absolutely thrilled to delve into the heartfelt motivations that propel each crew member on this incredible mission. In a captivating article for ELLE, several of these extraordinary women articulated their profound desire to inspire future generations.

For Perry, a mother to Daisy, her precious daughter with beloved fiancé Orlando Bloom, it’s about instilling in Daisy the unshakable belief that no dreams should be confined by boundaries. She passionately urges Daisy to “never set limits on her aspirations and demonstrate that any individual, regardless of their background, ethnicity, economic status, or educational background, can attain their dreams.”

King, who has bravely acknowledged her apprehensions, shared with the magazine her aspiration to prompt people to venture beyond their comfort zones. In her own words, she hopes that “once I do it, then doors will open for countless others who thought, ‘I was one of those hesitant individuals, but now I’m here and I am genuinely, really excited to embark on this journey.'”

Lastly, Nguyen eloquently expressed that her personal mission is to realize a “deferred dream.” Having worked at NASA and studied astrophysics at Harvard and MIT, life’s challenges momentarily derailed her celestial pursuit. Reflecting on gender-based violence as one of the primary reasons many women in STEM fields abandon their passions, Nguyen bravely fought for her rights as a sexual assault survivor. She drafted the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights, saw it passed through Congress and the United Nations, and after a decade, she felt compelled to honor the resilient spirit that was within her before the trauma: “I wanted to honor the person I was before I was hurt.

As reported by Good Morning America, each team member is scheduled to travel to the launch site early prior to the mission. There, they’ll undergo training, which encompasses various activities such as getting properly fitted for their flight suits, learning about the capsule, mastering communication with ground control, and reviewing safety procedures.

Even though the crew received collective preparations, some members like Bowe and Flynn took additional steps to ready themselves for the mission:

– Bowe intensified his training a year prior to launch, completing a NASTAR simulation to mimic the flight experience. He also has a fighter jet flight scheduled, eagerly anticipating it.
– Bowe also mentioned he underwent several zero-gravity simulation flights, where a Boeing 747 is flown in a parabolic pattern, causing everyone to float up during descent. This was to familiarize himself with weightlessness.
– Flynn added that she experienced up to five Gs of pressure during NASTAR training in Philadelphia.

Here are a few individuals who have shared what they plan to bring along on their mission:

– Nancy Conrad, wife of the third man to walk on the moon, Pete Conrad, is a mentor and inspiration to Bowe. She gifted her a flag that Apollo 12 carried, which will accompany Bowe on the flight.
– Bowe also mentioned she’ll be taking plant samples from Winston-Salem State University’s Astrobotany Lab as well as dehydrated conch chowder to honor The Bahamas.
– Nguyen is packing personal items for her journey, including shells from the island her mother is a refugee from and a promise she made to herself after overcoming an assault. This promise was written on a piece of paper that she taped to her laptop and looked at daily during her recovery and fight for her rights. On Instagram, Nguyen mentioned she’ll also be bringing the pen used by former President Barack Obama to sign the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Act, coins from the Nguyen dynasty, and Freetown cotton tree seeds.

Some stars have offered encouraging messages to the crew – for instance, King received a farewell video from CBS Mornings that featured Tom Hanks, Megan Rapinoe, Bill Nye, Drew Barrymore, among others. The Charlie’s Angels actress expressed her excitement about picking King’s brain as soon as he returns home. However, others like Olivia Munn have voiced criticism, questioning the need for the mission and its high cost during a time when many struggle to afford basic necessities. She also wondered what the mission was ultimately achieving. Olivia, too, acknowledged concerns about Jeff Bezos and Blue Origin, but she believes that in this particular case, the mission transcends one man and one company. King shares these sentiments and separates the two aspects of his life, asserting that it’s possible to support both the space exploration and other initiatives.

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2025-04-15 23:49