The Social Justice Code was passed in 2053, and barely ratified in 2054 and was adopted in large part by not just the United States, but also the European Union, and a number of NATO nations. Nations that didn't adopt the Code were placed on the other side of the CryptoCurtain. The CryptoCurtain was a firewall partition that separated the First World nations using the HyperNet from the rest of the world. The nations that did not adopt the code were locked out of the new HyperNet. This lead to many nations suffering economic collapses as they were no longer included in global economic transactions. Many develioping, degenerating, and otherwise third world nations suffered as they lacked the ability to institute the demands of the SJC-54. Nations who opposed the Code were drawn up into the opposition camp, and were largely on a defensive footing as their InterNet systems lacked quantum computers and crypto-technologies. This would facilitate the Resource Wars and the absolute brutality of said wars.

General Standards

(1) - The Status Quo shall never be presented in such a way as to create sympathy for the conservative, to promote distrust of the forces of social justice and activism, or to inspire others with a desire to imitate the Status Quo.

(1A) - The social position of the patriarchy, anglo or 'white' hegemony, and defaulting to heternormative cisgenger neurotypical stance shall hence be referred to as the Status Quo and or conservative position.

(2) - Social Justice Activists shall never be presented in a manner that fosters disrespect or distrust for their position

(3) - The details and methods of the Status Quo shall be depicted in a sordid and unpleasant manner

(4) - The Status Quo may never be presented in a manner that is glamorous or inspire emulation

(5) - In every instance the Social Justice Activist must prevail over the Status Quo, and the defender of the Status Quo must be punished for their misdeed

(6) - Scenes of violence shall be prohibited. Scenes of torture, knife and gunplay, physical agony, gory and gruesome crime shall be eliminated.

(7) - Any content that might be considered controversial or triggering must be preemptively labeled to prevent accidental exposure

(8) - No unique or novel methods of concealing or creating weapons can be depicted

(9) - Social Justice Activists being abused or killed is strongly discouraged

(10) - All scenes depicting sexism, racism, sexual discrimination, hate crimes, ableism, and other forms of prejudice and discrimination are prohibited.

(11) - Inclusion of stories dealing with the Status Quo shall be used or shall be published only where the intent is to illustrate a social issue and in no case shall evil be presented alluringly, nor so as to injure the sensibilities of the audience.

(12) - Racial, ethnic, classist, or gender slurs, and any other words or symbols which have acquired undesirable meanings are forbidden. This rule is specifically retro-active up to ten years for materials published after 2054.

Religion

(1) - Ridicule or attack on any religious or racial group is never permissible, unless said religion or racial group strongly supports the Status Quo

(2) - Any religious or racial group that actively promotes the Status Quo is treated as if they are part of the Status Quo and do not receive religious or racial protections granted by the Social Justice Act.

Costume and Wardrobe

(1) - Body shaming in any form in unacceptable

(2) - All characters will be depicted in dress reasonable and acceptable to their racial and ethnic profile. Cultural appropriation is expressly forbidden.

(3) - Status Quo gender standards are not allowed to be depicted as if they are healthy, normal, or desirable

Social Unions and Sexuality

(1) - Status Quo Marriage (heteronormative theocratic monogamy) shall not be promoted in a humorous or desirable manner

(2) - Non-traditional sexual relationships are never to be treated is if they were illicit or immortal

(3) - Rape and non-consensual sexual relationships are strictly forbidden. Consent must be present and reaffirmed within each scene/chapter/encounter

(4) - Respect for social authority, social activism, and for ecological conscious behavior shall be fostered. A sympathetic understanding of the problems of relationships is not a license for regressive romanticism

(5) - The treatment of live-romance stories shall emphasize the value of acceptance and the sanctity of sexual self expression.

(6) - Consensual sex, regardless of the mode or method, shall never be depicted as if it were perversion or abnormal

Code for Advertising

(1) - Addictive substances (as identified by the appropriate government agency as being addictive and lacking health or social value) shall never be advertised

(2) - Weapons or any stripe (including toy and replica weapons) shall never be advertised

(3) - Advertising explosive devices (formerly known as 'fireworks') is expressly forbidden

(4) - Social Authority with religious purpose or dominant postures shall not be permitted in the advertising of any product; Status Quo figures shall never be presented in such a way as to be offensive or contrary to good taste or morals

(5) - Each publisher shall ascertain that all statements made in advertisements conform to fact and avoid misrepresentation. Failure to do so will result in fines or censure

Fallout of the Social Justice Code of 2054

There were a number of very large events that came from the Code, the most galvanizing was the polarization between the technological and socially progressive western world, and the Russian and Chinese spheres of influence. The west experienced a short term economic resurgence with the HyperNet streamlining many systems, and the first generation of AISCs and arcologies being built.

The Culture Schism of 2060

The United States suffered the first serious rumblings of internal discontent as the Code seemingly vilified large ethnic and cultural populations of the country. There was also a massive false equivalency and various cultural quotas that were enforced by the government, requiring that alternate lifestyles, non-binary genders, and an increasingly long list of diversity factors be represented in media, government, business, and other facets of life. The schism grew because this was creating a peculiar situation where there were an inordinate number of social positions being held vacant as there were frequently not enough people fitting the government social criteria to hold said position. Agencies and groups that went forward without meeting these quotas were penalized, fined, or censured for doing so. Attempts to eliminate these diversity positions were likewise punished by government and social groups. The Culture Schism erupted along old ethnic and regional lines with the Old South rebelling. There were also riots and violence as various groups, emboldened by the legislation, enacted their own laws creating their own 'pocket tyrannies' that grew out of the Sanctuary City model.

The Decade of Deviance (2055-2065)

The Decade of Deviance grew out of the anti-deviance aspects of the Code. These aspects were created to protect groups such as gays, lesbians, those involved in BDsM movements, and other long established but frequently oppressed and misrepresented sub-cultures. The wording of Code was vague enough that it created an explosion of previously deviant and illegal behavior. It was argued in court that the code decriminalized pedophilia, necrophilia, incest, and bestiality, so long as consent was given, otherwise social condemnation of such alternative sexual lifestyles constituted discrimination, and was illegal. The HyperNet saw a massive spike in the deviant behavior as well as a subsequent spike in the abuse of children and others who were less than able to give consent. A number of high profile crimes dominated the news cycle, including tandem trials where the father of a child who was being used in a sexual manner by another adult was tried for attempted murder, while the opposite person was tried for non-consensual sexual conduct. There were many such encounters, and tensions with law enforcement also spiked.

The HyperWall

The SJC-2054 became the lynchpin in the partitioning of the HyperNet from the rest of the global Internet. This effectively split the world into two sectors. On the HyperNet side, arcanotech was being scratched at, arcology engineering was starting, and the first self sustaining sentient computer systems were coming online. On the other side, nations and states were struggling with resource problems, and were increasingly resorting to disabling their internet systems to prevent tech based revolutions and to put down organizations attempts by dissidents. The HyperWall became a symbol of division, and fostered hostility and militarization on the outside, while those inside were insulated from the growing dissent outside. Cyberwarfare raged between both sides, and there were increasing levels of insurgency on both sides, as the Resource Wars were drawing near. Most of these early rumblings were concealed by the comforting noise of the HyperNet, all the pornography, art, music, free to play games, MMORPGs, and increasingly larger sports leagues. This went in hand in hand with the increasing militarism that lead into the stunning violence of the Resource Wars.


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