"On November 22nd, 1968, the iconic kiss between Captain James Kirk (William Shatner) and Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) happens during the airing of ""Star Trek"" episode, ""Plato's Stepchildren"". The topic of the first interracial kiss on television is a topic of much debate, with most sources considering kisses between Desi Arnez and Lucille Ball on ""I Love Lucy"" as the first. Even though the kiss between Kirk and Uhura may be wrongly considered the first, it is definitely one of the most iconic. The episode that features the kiss, ""Plato's Stepchildren"", aired one year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned unconstitutional nationwide laws that prohibited interracial marraige. Although there was much worry from NBC and ""Star Trek"" producers of what the public's reaction to the kiss would be, it turned out that there wasn't much of a public reaction. Today, the kiss is considered to be a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement.
FUN FACT: Nichelle Nichols considered quitting ""Star Trek"" early on, but Martin Luther King Jr. insisted she stayed, as it would be a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement. "
