Pillarisation in Lucrecia
Pillarisation in Lucrecia (Isurian and Pelaxian: Pilarización) is a sociopolitical phenomenon in Lucrecia in which the citizens are vertically separated into groups based on their political beliefs. There exists four of these so-called "pillars" in Lucrecian society: the conservatives, the socialists, the liberals, and the nationalists.
Each of these pillars have an associated institution or organisation. This often means that there exists a sort of ideological segregation within Lucrecian society, and each of these pillars are also segregated based on the associated language group albeit with some degree of intersectionality not found in the main pillars such as the existence of "federal pacts" between otherwise linguistically-segregated political parties, although these pacts are mostly put in place for the major political parties within each pillar, save for the nationalist pillar, of which the main political parties have implemented a policy of cordon sanitaire against each other, with the Party for an Independent Generality having only one ally party, that being the national liberal ILUCED.
Overview
From the formation of Lucrecia in the 16th Century all the way until the 1970s, Lucrecian society was socially segregated between the speakers of the Emeritan vernacular of the Pelaxian language, who were often in positions of power (particularly in the Senatorial House), and the speakers of the Isurian language, who were practically locked out of any position of power unless they knew how to speak Pelaxian. This meant that ethnic Isurians were informally made into second-class citizens. This was often a point of contention in Lucrecian society as ethnic Isurians had no representation in the Lucrecian upper classes, and any Isurian who was a part of the upper classes simply opted to abandon the Isurian language anyway in hopes of advancing their status in society. This state of affairs more or less remained the same for the next four centuries.
Initially during the first three of these four centuries, there were only two pillars in existence: the conservatives, and the liberals, respectively comprising the two main political factions: the Viejos Leales, and the Demagogos. Of course, back before the late 17th Century, these two factions were rather fluid and membership was more based on the personal whims of the senators than any ideological beliefs. Indeed, many senators prolonged their careers by pragmatically supporting the policies of the opposing faction. Of these two original political factions, the Demagogos, which later became the Countrymen Party, wished for a reformation of the Lucrecian political sphere, namely eroding the aristocracy's near-monopoly on power, redistributing some of the Senatorial House's power to the Centuriate, Tributary, and Common (last two now a part of the Popular) Assemblies, and even move away from the predominance of the Pelaxian language in the circles of government. This last goal lined up perfectly with the interests of the Isurians, who subsequently sided more and more with the liberal pillar, with some even siding with the socialist pillar when it joined the other two pillars in the 1920s. As the alliance between the Isurians and the more progressive pillars grew, so did calls for a great amount of reforms to the Lucrecian system.
By 1950, the cause for Isurian representation was nearly inseparable from the liberal and socialist pillars, especially as the language struggle boiled over with the Great Isurian strike of 1968 when ethnic Isurians from many professions simply refused to work until the Lucrecian state put an end to the long-standing Emeritan stranglehood over the nation's politics. With a great many sectors massively underperforming due to the well-coordinated efforts of the strike, the Lucrecian government entered into a series of negotiations with the most prominent Isurianists as well as liberal and socialist politicians that would soon culminate in the Popular Amendments of 1970 which established the foundations for the federalisation and democratisation of Lucrecia. As a consequence of these reforms, two sub-pillars soon began to form within each of the three pillars, which were soon joined by a fourth main pillar, the nationalists, groups that advocate for either greater linguistic rights or even outright separatism although parties that do fit within the nationalist pillar did historically exist, most notably the National Fascist Party which ruled Lucrecia from 1925 until it was forcibly dissolved in 1947. This also meant that the parties that served as the main political leaders of each pillar were split into two to represent the two linguistic communities, albeit under a "federal pact" to ensure bilingual cooperation and to lessen the segregatory effects of the pillars.
In modern Lucrecian politics, parties that are either bilingual or cross-pillar in nature are very rare, often limited to single-issue parties or beliefs that do not fit in neatly within the pillars.
Institutions by pillar and linguistic affiliation
The following table is limited to the most prominent institutions as well as it shows the division based on linguistic lines.
| Isurian Conservative | Emeritan Conservative | Isurian Socialist | Emertian Socialist | Isurian Liberal | Emeritan Liberal | Isurian Nationalist | Emeritan Nationalist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Political parties before 1973 | Viejos Leales (178 BC-1679) Courtier Party (1679-1869) Anti-Revolutionary Party (PAR) (1869-1973) |
Socialist Workers' Party (PSO) (1922-1973) | Demagogos (178 BC-1671) Countrymen Party (1671-1854) Revolutionary Democratic Party (PDR) (1854-1973) |
National Fascist Party (PNF) (1922-1947) Rally for a Real Nation (MNR) (1953-1971) | ||||
| Political parties after 1973 | PCP minor |
PSD minor |
PSX minor |
PDR minor |
LDI minor |
PPD minor |
PXI minor |
PNE |
| Trade unions | Federated Unions of Lucrecia (UFL) | Labour Federation of Lucrecia (FOL) | United Federation of Labour (FUT) | Isurian Collective of Labour (CIT) | Emeritan Trade Union Council (CSE) | |||
| Health insurance | Sanitaria Horizonte | Sanidad del Horizonte | Axuda Mutua Sanitaria | Ayuda Mutua de Sanidad | Servizo de Asistencia Sanitaria | Servicio de Atención Médica | Asistencia Mutua Vital | Asistencia Mutua de Vida |
| Hospitals | Blue Cross | Care for the Family | United Hospital Fund | League for Healthy Emeritans | Solidarity for Health | Partnership for Health | Centre for Life | Federated Association of Hospitals |
| Aid agencies | Caridade Católica | Caridad Catolica | Garantías de Solidariedade e Socorro | Garantías de Solidaridad y Socorro | Asociación de Samaritanos Unidos | Asociación de Samaritanos Unidos | Grupo de Socorro de Salvación | Liga por una Mejor Emérita |
| Newspapers | Estrela do Sur | La Voz de la Nación | Levántate! | ¡Adelante! | Revista Telegráfica | La Antorcha | Participa Agora! | Revolución Silenciosa |
| Cultural associations | Agrupación Moscoso | none | Agrupación Valladares | none | Agrupación Braga | none | Agrupación Delepas | none |
| Schools | Catholic schools, Catholic-influenced public schools | Catholic schools, Catholic-influenced public schools | Public schools | Public schools | Public schools, non-denominational private schools | Public schools, non-denominational private schools | Non-denominational private schools | Non-denominational private schools |
| Banks | Banco Nacional Popular da Xeneralidade | Banco Nacional Popular de la República | Unión Federal de Crédito | Unión Federal de Crédito | Novo Banco Unido | Nuevo Banco Unido | Banco Comercial Unido | Banco Nacional de Comercio |
Although there does exist so-called "united institutions", these are often small or exist with the sole purpose of coordinating between allied groups. Indeed, it is what the "federal pacts" between political parties fall under.