Cirinist
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Appear (as a group) in issues 20, xxx, 151-161, 164-167, 193, 194 Cameos/Mentions in issues 28, 40-41.
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Group History
From the letters page of issue 26: "The Cirinists are the most recent incarnation of the original matriarchal society that once dominated Estarcion. They have a foothold now that they have formed the revolutionary government of Upper Felda, but almost everywhere else on the map, they are either a grudgingly tolerated or rabidly persecuted minority."
When the Sepran army withdrew from Upper Felda after their 100 year occupation, they execute all males between the ages of five and forty. This leaves only the children, elderly males, young women and mothers. The mother's concern of their children's future draws them to Cirinism and the five cornerstones. issue 194, p. 6 - 8.
The group started out as knitting circles in the small rural town of Riverside. The women were fearful of their children's future, and in the five cornerstones they saw hope for the future. Once the group starts wearing the head to toe robes, they take their focus off the cosmetic biases, become equals and start focusing on the real issues. The group shares their material possessions and child rearing responsibilities, and takes to calling themselves 'The Mothers', 'The Motherhood' and 'Quilting'. As 'Quilting' spreads to the next towns over, commerce, i.e. farmer's markets, begin to decline. The men start to take up drinking and the women work. Violence in taverns is tolerated, but domestic violence isn't: a communal safety group is formed to kill all such violators: any violence against women is met by swift execution. This communal safety group, the group that kills the men who commit acts of violence against women, are called Cirinists in an homage to the original Cirin. As more and more women join the quilting circles, more women want to help maintain the safety and the ranks of the Cirinists grow. They grow so much that evenually the name of the group changes to Cirinist despite the original Cirin's objections. issue 194
Cirin has been staging revolutions and infiltrating populaces throughout the world. (28, pgs. 6-7) She has purged her own inner circle three times since the revolution. (28, p.18)
Group Traits
It was revealed in issues 150-151 that Cirinists are telepathic with one another, and that any harm to one of them causes all others in the vicinity to "swarm" the attacker. According to Vera's Prisoner, "All women read minds, with very few exceptions." (164, p.3). From the various ways it is used, it would seem that this ability is affected by distance, and the Cirinists must use either unusually-strong telepaths, or more mundane, mechanical signals to transmit messages over a long distance.
Cirinists (at least Cirinist soldiers) are deadly fighters.
Citizenship in a Cirinist-run government is determined by childbirth, only mothers are citizens. Infertile women are of very low status, and abortion and birth control are outlawed.
Cirinists keep extensive files on all political dissidents, and often have stenographers taking reports on any possibly important exchanges. "It is the very essence of our movement that all information is exchanged freely, that it is assessed carefully and its application is measured and just." (170, p.19).
Five Corner Stones of Cirinism
From issue 194, developed by the Original Cirin:
- Communal Safety
- The sharing of resources
- Hard labour from sunrise to sunset
- Quarterly Festivals (lasting three days) of excess and debauchery
- Asceticism in all areas of existence
6th Corner Stone of Cirinism
After Serna took Cirin's name, she instituted a 6th corner stone of Cirinism:
- Ten percent of rations for communal safety
