Green Carnation Party

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The Green Carnation Party is a political group that now has versions in many countries all over the world, although the first such were created in England and Kemr.

Unlike more mainstream political parties, the Green Carnations focus on upon one specific set of issues--the treatment of homosexuals.

Background

For much of history, and in many places, homosexual acts were considered severely criminal. Yet there have often been other cultures that reacted more-or-less postively to homosexuals. The Roman Catholic Church condemns homosexual relations, a view that was affirmed by the Vatican Council, although Pope Gregory XVIJ strongly made the argument that this was a case of "hating the sin with loving the sinner." In general Protestant Churches have run the gamut from severely condemning to celebrating the homosexual lifestyle. Islam in theory condemns such, but (at least in the past) the practice of allowing and even encouraging homosexual relations has existed.

Interestingly, although past civilizations usually had words for the act of what we today call homosexuality (the most famous of which is probably "sodomy" from the Old Testament tale of Sodom and Gomorrah), the actual concept of the homosexual seems a relatively recent invention. It seems to have been codified--as so many things were--during the 19th century.

During the reign of Queen Victoria, English and Scottish parliaments passed laws against "grossly indecent acts between members of the same sex" with punishment defined as years of hard labor. A similar law was narrowly defeated in Kemr, mostly because of opposition from Rhoberth II who seemed to think the whole matter no one's business. To this day, this Kemrese king is something of a hero in the Gay Rights Movement.

Following the trial and imprisonment of Oscar de Bhílde, groups dedicated to winning his extradition from England and ultimate release were formed. They took their name from the green carnation de Bhílde sometimes wore and which Crown Prosecutors tried to portray as a kind of coded signal between like-minded individuals.

History and Politics

By the year 1900 there were Green Carnation Parties in the NAL and Louisianne as well as Scotland, France, Prussia, Italy and Russia. At first, their numbers were quite low, although during the 1920s and 1930s their numbers in the NAL swelled. Some of this is attributed to the vociferous support of Mae-Belle West. The SNOR regime persecuted them, while Adolf Hessler's regime in Prussia was relatively tolerant.

During the 1970s an alliance of sorts developed between the Green Carnation Parties and various Anti-Snor groups. The former were much the junior partner, but were often politically more astute. Over time, as the Anti-Snorists got older and moved into positions of responsibility in general society, their Green Carnation allies likewise make more "mainstream." This was not without opposition. Strongly conservative groups such as the Alliance for Public Decency and the Adullumite Republicans were their avowed enemies, but by strong party discipline the Green Carnations were able to parlay their votes into the granting of increasing levels of equal civil liberties.

Another major opposition in the NAL has been the traditional attitudes of some native tribes such as the Cherokee Nation.

Issues

In general, the Green Carnation Parties favor the same agenda:

  • Repeal of all laws against homosexual acts or behavior.
  • Equal opportunity to serve in any and all ways that heterosexuals serve (the military, the priesthood, etc.)
  • Same-gender marriage, including all the legal rights and privileges of same.
  • Greater acceptance and visibility of homosexuals in mainstream culture.

Right wing groups as a rule oppose these objectives while Left wingers tend to support them. However, this is not a hard and fast rule. More than one GC leader has pointed out that while the Whigs drag their feet, some Progressive Conservatives have actually advanced their agenda in real ways (Ontario's law distinguishing between civil and religious marriages is a case in point).

At the same time, the Green Carnations are not without internal dissent. Rivalry between gay males and lesbians have been present from the beginning, while bisexuals notoriously complain of being considered second class citizens by both straights and gays. Those who have undergone gender modification surgery (i.e. "transsexuals") likewise complain of being poor second cousins to the main movement.

Around The World

The GCP exists in many nations:

Egypt

The equivalent of the Green Carnation Party is banned in Egypt, although enforcement of such ban (along with laws aimed at curbing homosexual activity) are enforced very erratically.

FK

Although it started in Kemr, there has never been a Green Carnation member of the senad. This is likewise true of the Scottish Parliament but not of England's. Elsewhere, the Green Carnation Party tends to become a subset of some larger party.

Louisianne

While the GCP (known as le Parti Œillet Vert) doesn't actively participate in politics as a party that elects candidates, the GCP of Louisianne finds members of most of the major parties as frequent attenders of GCP party conferences.

NAL

Currently there are two Green Carnation members within the House of Delegates: Bernadette Franck of Castreleon New and Newton Delay of Jacobia.

Turkestan

Logo of the GCPT

The Green Carnation Party was banned in Turkestan during the Snorist period. It was officially permitted (along with just about everyone else that the Snorist government had banned) in 1991, but it is a very small party, one of many political groups formed around a single issue or small group of issues. Its first and only member Dılbohar Timür-qızı was elected to the Keņes in the 2003 election, and she was returned to the Turkestani parliament in the 2009 elections. Most Turkestanis view the GCP with a mixture of apathy and disguised loathing, however, and it is considered unlikely that they will ever be more than a minor party. They have, however, catalysed the formation of a counter-party, the so-called "Orange Alliance", whose stance for "traditional morality" is consciously against the GCPT and all its works. Again, though, the Orange Alliance is a minor party with only a single member, though this is more due to the fact that most political parties in Turkestan do not favour changing the law in this particular.