Emeraudian Spring
 | This article is incomplete because it is pending further input from participants, or it is a work-in-progress by one author. Please comment on this article's talk page to share your input, comments and questions. Note: To contribute to this article, you may need to seek help from the author(s) of this page. |
| Emeraudian Spring | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Jean-Baptiste Canmore, an important figure of the Emeraudian Spring | |||
| Date | 1915-1934 (end date disputed) | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by | Great Collapse anti-colonialist attitudes egalitarian attitudes labor unionism Emeraudian nationalism | ||
| Goals | labor rights racial equality Emeraudian independence (later on) | ||
| Methods | Civil disobedience Civil resistance Protests strike action | ||
| Resulted in | heightened Emeraudian nationalism, embrace of egalitarianism, foundations laid for Île d'Émeraude's rather progressive society | ||
| Parties to the civil conflict | |||
| |||
| Lead figures | |||
The Emeraudian Spring was a social and political movement that occurred in Île d'Émeraude beginning in 1914; the exact time of the movement's conclusion is under dispute, though most historians agree its most likely aligned with the end of the Great War, and therefore the end of Gaullican governance of Île d'Émeraude. The movement arose in the wake of the Great Collapse, at first aiming to protect worker's rights in the face of an economic depression. It quickly began to grow, becoming a more broad movement that supported egalitarianism, racial equality, and later on, the independence of Île d'Émeraude from Gaullican rule. It was mostly supported by the Bahian population of the island, and elements of Pan-Bahianism were embraced by the movement; however, there was also significant support from other non-Black groups, such as the Gousa and the Narapan, as well as the working class.
A harsh response from the Gaullican colonial government caused protests to evolve into full-blown widespread riots, which were only intensified during the outbreak of the Great War. After the island's liberation by the Grand Alliance, led by the Asterian Federative Republic, the riots would end, though thanks to the Spring there would be a high desire for independence among the people of Île d'Émeraude, which would eventually be achieved in 1952.
The Spring was a transformative period that would play a major role in the formation, development, and shaping of the Emeraudian national identity. A time of great social upheaval, the movement's focus on social equality and justice helped to shape the Emeraudian national identity by promoting values that became central to Emeraudian culture. These beliefs in the rights of all people, regardless of race or social status, to equal treatment and opportunity are reflected in the Emeraudian Constitution and its influence continues to be felt in Île d'Émeraude both politically and culturally.
Background
Great Collapse
The Great Collapse first began following the collapse of the Weisstadt Stock Exchange in Werania. The economic turmoil experienced in Euclea began to reach Île d'Émeraude in early 1914, as the decline of trade began to impact the exportation of sugar on which the Emeraudian economy at the time was highly dependent on. The consequences of the Collapse were far-reaching for the working classes of the island. Employers in the sugar industry began to drastically reduce wages in a bid to avoid as many financial losses as possible, which helped make the cost of living skyrocket as other goods such as foodstuffs would become more expensive. Social conditions began to deteriorate as unemployment went up and as the welfare system proved too insufficient to properly address the issue. In reaction, much of the working class became agitated, forming labor unions and groups that would become the precursors to the groups which led the Emeraudian Spring.
Séparer
Séparer is the name given to the system of racial segregation that was present in Île d'Émeraude during the colonial era. It's beginnings are found in the mid 19th Century, not long after the abolition of slavery and the arrival of the first Gousa laborers. Alarmed by the size of the nonwhite population, which vastly outnumbered the whites - and fearing a potential hostile takeover by said population - the colony began to issue decrees limiting the rights of nonwhites to bear arms, assemble in large groups, testify against whites in court, and exercise free speech. Anti-miscegenation laws were also passed, but these were largely unenforced.
Séparer is generally seen to have fully come into its own in 1881, when the colonial governor-general of the time, [TBD], issued a decree that enforced racial segregation in all public areas, regardless of whether that space was publicly or privately owned. It was justified by its supporters as a means to keep the peace, though in practice it merely served to institutionally place nonwhites at a social, economic, educational, and political disadvantage - therefore reinforcing the white population's position of power. Séparer had been an oft-resisted system since it was first introduced, with numerous nonwhite groups engaging in protest against it. However, it was continually enforced by the colonial government despite efforts to overturn it; it remained in effect up until 1936.