I would not recommend eating while thinking of LBJ's big bulbous balls, let alone their proximity to his bunghole.
Blue Skies in Camelot: An Alternate 60's and Beyond
- Thread starter President_Lincoln
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Chapter 59
Chapter 59: Who’ll Stop the Rain - 1970 in the UK, Japan, and Quebec
The 1970 United Kingdom general election was set to be easily one of the most hotly contested in decades, and given the extraordinary circumstances surrounding it both at home and abroad, had the possibility of being one of the most historic as well. According to the press and virtually every pollster in the western world, the embattled Labour government of Prime Minister Harold Wilson stood a snowball’s chance in Hell of being thrust into office once again. Labour’s popularity hovered at a painful 28% as inflation ticked ever upward at home and the nation settled into its second year of the “Bush War” in the Commonwealth of Rhodesia. Nearly a thousand Britons had been killed since the start of “Wilson’s Folly”, yet for all of their sacrifice, little seemed to be achieved in Southeastern Africa. Rhodesian Prime Minister Field finally allowed for the black majority to vote in the country’s snap 1969 elections, but UN observers were unconvinced of their legitimacy when Field’s Rhodesian Front party, a conservative centre-right coalition of largely white backed policy makers won overwhelming victories at the polls. With each passing week it seemed that Mugabe’s insurgency grew in size and strength, as Lin Baio and Fidel Castro sung his praises and shipped ever more supplies, weapons, and funds to their side. First Secretary Andropov of the Soviet Union had been mostly quiet on the conflict for the time being, though after a speech before the Politburo on January 14th, 1970 decrying “imperialism in Africa and beyond”, it appeared to the UK and the west that the USSR’s position on Rhodesia might soon change as well. Wilson realized that the war was dragging down his government, but could not bring himself to call for a full scale withdrawal, as thousands of anti-war protesters across the country were demanding. Wilson felt responsible for the fledgling Commonwealth nation, and declared that through “perseverance, power, and prayer”, Britain could bring about an honorable peace in Rhodesia. Recently elected Conservative leader Randolph Churchill viciously mocked this sentiment, declaring that “guns, grit, and bombs” were what won wars, including the one his father had led the nation through only twenty five years before. The Tory leader insisted that Wilson and Labour were “in over their heads” and needed to be replaced at the ballot box if the United Kingdom was going to have any chance at victory, or at the very least, an honourable peace. Hoping to preserve any chance they might have of not being absolutely destroyed on election day, Wilson decided to hold the election in June, before the introduction of decimal coinage, scheduled for early 1971, which he predicted would be hugely unpopular. He also wanted to try and “stop the bleeding”, that is, curtail Conservative momentum, as the Tories were expecting an October election, and had campaigned accordingly.
Though both parties were eager to control the narrative of their views on various issues, the War dominated debate, discussion, and reporting throughout the campaign. Labour clung to Wilson’s defense of the War as it was, insisting that through continued faith in the British military’s operational capacity, the conflict could soon be brought to a successful conclusion. This position, while beneficial for the Prime Minister, did little to engender support or enthusiasm amongst the party’s core base. Unionists and social democrats were furious with the war, especially as Wilson made plans to curtail domestic entitlement and education spending to help pay for it. To make matters worse, Wilson flip flopped on another major issue of the day which divided his party seemingly down the middle: membership in the European Economic Community (EEC). Previously kept out by the veto of Charles De Gaulle, the UK was now in a prime position to join the EEC when the next opportunity arose in 1973. Whichever leader became Prime Minister in this election would likely receive a mandate from the British people to negotiate entry on their behalf. This presented yet another problem for Wilson, as many in the Labour party were sceptical of or adamantly opposed to EEC membership. The British public, via polling, showed conclusively that they were very much in favor of joining the Community, and thus Churchill and the Tories seemed to be better positioned to make a strong case at the negotiating table and bring Britain in on her terms.
Blessedly for Wilson however, not all was well within the Conservative Party either. Churchill’s last minute election as party leader had angered many Heath loyalists, who condemned his actions as at best cold blooded opportunism, at worst, treason against an eminently qualified leader. Ted Heath’s experience in economic policy seemed to be what Britain needed most as inflation worsened and talks with the EEC loomed. While having a man named Churchill sitting in Downing Street during wartime was perhaps a nice shot of comforting nostalgia for a concerned nation on edge, the magic of his name would soon wear off and leave Britons with the reality of their situation: most of Randolph Churchill’s political talents came in attacking policies he disagreed with, not in crafting initiatives of his own. Additionally, Churchill and Thatcher made a powerful enemy when they forced former Shadow Secretary of State for Defense Enoch Powell from the party in the wake of his “Rivers of Blood” speech against immigration. Though the press and many throughout Europe congratulated Churchill for standing up to Powell on principle and purging Powell’s bigoted rhetoric from the party platform, the decision ultimately cost the Conservatives with a large number of would-be supporters. Powell and his beliefs were remarkably popular amongst Britons. A poll held just before the election showed that nearly 70% of respondents thought that Powell was “right or mostly right” about there being too much immigration of non-white foreigners into the UK. When Powell announced a week before election day that he refused to back his former party, intended to stay home or vote Labour, and advised every “true British soul” to do the same, millions of blue collar workers and disillusioned middle aged Britons listened. Add to this a boost in national prestige as England’s football team defeated West Germany’s in the World Cup Quarter Finals on June 15th, and the stage was set for a remarkably close contest in what was supposed to be a Conservative landslide.
1970 UK General Election Results
630 Seats in the House of Commons
316 Seats needed for a majority
316 Seats needed for a majority
Conservative Party - 318 Seats (Up from 253)
Labour Party - 300 Seats (Down from 364)
Liberal Party - 6 Seats (Down from 12)
Labour Party - 300 Seats (Down from 364)
Liberal Party - 6 Seats (Down from 12)
Randolph Churchill and his Conservatives had won a victory, but it was much narrower than anticipated. Low turnout and the opposition of Enoch Powell cut deeply into what could have been a commanding mandate for the Tories to govern and lead the UK into their vision of the future. Prime Minister Wilson was gracious in his concession and vowed to lead Labour in Opposition, where he hoped he could paint his failures as mere signs of the times, showing that the Tories handled things even worse than he did. Over the first several years of his time as PM, Churchill would go on to face severe criticism for his handling of seemingly everything from EEC admission to the still ongoing War to the rapidly escalating situation in Northern Ireland. Though some historians argue that these failings were the natural result of a relatively inexperienced policy maker being handed the reigns of power in a very turbulent time, others believe that the election results which just barely scraped him into office haunted the normally bold leader. He would not be able to bravely stomp his way into the history books, as he’d hoped. Instead, he would need to build a reputation as a compromiser.
…
Above: Prime Minister Hayato Ikeda of Japan and President John F. Kennedy meet aboard the Presidential Yacht, Honey Fitz, to discuss strengthening relations between the two nations, and what role Japan will play as it reenters the world stage just before the 1964 summer Olympics in Tokyo.
The decade and a half since the end of World War II had been a period of immense change and reconstruction for the Land of the Rising Sun. No longer a Fascistic Empire on the march for glory and conquest, the newly minted Constitutional Monarchy contented itself with new drives toward economic development and a flourishing culture. Japan proved itself immensely successful in both fields, and by the dawn of the 1970’s, Japan was on track to become the world’s second largest economy behind only the mighty United States, and its popular culture began to reach out and influence the rest of the world. Whether it be through Anime, Manga, Kurosawa films, or Sumo Wrestling, electronics, and compact cars, Japan was making an impact and cementing its status as one of the world’s leading nations once again. The Allied occupation ended on April 28th, 1952, when the terms of the Treaty of San Francisco went into effect. By the terms of said treaty, Japan regained her sovereignty, but lost many of her pre-war possessions such as Korea, Taiwan, Sakhalin, and small islands throughout the Pacific like the Marianas and the Marshalls. Concerned with Cold War alliances and defending against Communist aggression, the treaty also enabled Japan to join international defensive blocs, which it did on the same day the treaty was ratified, striking a strong alliance with the United States. From then on, the U.S. would continue to use their bases in Japan, and the nation would become a beacon of democracy and capitalism for all of the Far East.
Even before Japan regained its full sovereignty, the new government had rehabilitated nearly 80,000 people who had previously been purged, many of whom returned to their former political and government positions. A debate over limitations on military spending and the sovereignty of the Emperor ensued, contributing to a great reduction in the centre-right Liberal Party's majority in the first post occupation elections held in October of 1952. After several reorganizations of the armed forces, in 1954 the “Self-Defense Forces” were established under a civilian director to act in place of a traditional military. Cold War realities and the hot war in nearby Korea also contributed significantly to the United States-influenced economic redevelopment, the suppression of communism, and the discouragement of organized labor in Japan during this period, leading to a nation of booming prosperity but pronounced social conservatism.
Continual fragmentation of parties and a succession of minority governments led conservative forces to merge the Liberal Party (Jiyuto) with the Japan Democratic Party (Nihon Minshuto), an offshoot of the earlier Democratic Party, to form the Liberal Democratic Party (Jiyu-Minshuto; LDP) in November of 1955. LDP leadership was drawn from the elite who had seen Japan through its defeat and occupation; attracting former bureaucrats, local politicians, businessmen, journalists, other professionals, farmers, and university graduates into their ranks. Though various minority parties would rise and fall over the years to oppose them, the LDP, with its centrist outlook and pragmatic mode of policy making, remained solidly in power for much of the Cold War. In October of 1955, socialist groups opposed to the “bourgeois rule” of the LDP reunited under the Japan Socialist Party, which emerged as the second most powerful political force in the nation. It was followed closely in popularity by the Kōmeitō, founded in 1964 as the political arm of the Soka Gakkai (Value Creation Society), a lay former organization of the Buddhist sect Nichiren Shoshu. The Komeito emphasized traditional Japanese beliefs and attracted urban laborers, former rural residents, and many women. Like the Japan Socialist Party, it favored the gradual modification and dissolution of the Japan-United States Mutual Security Assistance Pact, which meant that the American Intelligence Community opposed their efforts to take power at virtually every opportunity.
The LDP government, through institutions such as Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), encouraged Japanese industrial development overseas while restricting foreign companies' business within the country. These practices, coupled with a reliance on the United States for defense, allowed Japan's economy to grow exponentially during the Cold War, and develop such symbols of modernity as the first Shinkansen “Bullet Train”, unveiled in Tokyo in 1964. Soon, an entire network of these trains would be constructed across the nation, serving as a model of industrial efficiency and development for the rest of the world. That same year, the ‘64 summer Olympics were held in the Japanese Capital and marked for many the Land of the Rising Sun’s return to the international stage. Images of a happy, productive, peaceful people being beamed into American and European households showed not the angry, vicious enemy the Allies had overcome in 1945, but a nation of business people and artists, craving the opportunity to rejoin the global community. The culture of the Cherry Blossom Kingdom was also brought home by American troops stationed there in the form of movies about "Kaiju", such as the 1954 classic Godzilla, Japanese martial arts and literature, and the exchange went the other way as well. Throughout the 1950’s and 60’s, westernization continued to steamroll through Japan, producing a unique and interesting culture blending American and European influences with those of Japan’s ancient past. Though social progress would eventually find its way to the Land of the Rising Sun as it did the rest of the world, protests and legislation were slow going as deeply seeded social conservatism reigned supreme. Japan may have been on the precipice of a great new position for itself globally, but it did not yet seem ready to embrace many of the changes engulfing the western world.
…
John Napier Wyndham Turner, Canada’s 16th and youngest ever Prime Minister at 41 years old as of June 1970, was catapulted into the leadership of the Great White North by the most trying and tragic of circumstances, but vowed not to let the beginning of his Premiership define his time in office. He wanted to counter claims that his was “an accidental leadership” and immediately strived to capitalize on his bilingualism, handsome appearance, and charisma to tout himself as Canada’s answer to John F. Kennedy. Born on June 7th, 1929 in Richmond, London, England, to Leonard Hugh Turner, an English journalist and Phyllis Gregory, a Canadian, Turner felt that from the very beginning of his life, he had been marked for greatness in leadership. In 1930, a younger sister named Brenda was born to the family, and when their father passed away two years later, Turner, Brenda, and their mother moved back to her native Canada, settling in her childhood home of Rossland, British Columbia before later moving once again, this time to Ottawa, Ontario. Turner’s mother was loving but demanding of her two children, and encouraged them to achieve greatly as they were by no means wealthy. Phyllis would eventually remarry to Frank Mackenzie Ross, who later served as Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia.
Turner was educated at Ashbury College and St Patrick's College, Ottawa. He enrolled at the University of British Columbia in 1945 at age 16, and was among Canada's outstanding track sprinters in the late 1940’s, even qualifying for the 1948 Olympic team. He held the Canadian record for the 100 metre dash, but a bad knee kept him from competing in the 1948 London Olympics, a fact he regretted for the rest of his life. He graduated from UBC with a B.A. Honours in 1949. Awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, Turner then went on to Magdalen College at the University of Oxford, where he earned a B.A., Jurisprudence, 1951; a Bachelor of Civil Law, 1952; and an M.A., 1957. He was on the track and field team at Oxford; where one of his teammates was Roger Bannister, who became the first runner to break the four-minute barrier in the mile. At Oxford, Turner was a classmate and friend of future Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser. He also pursued doctoral studies at the University of Paris from 1952 to 1953.
In between building his truly impressive academic resume, Turner also found time to pursue a royal romance. On May 19th, 1959, at a party hosted by his step-father as Lieutenant Governor, to celebrate the opening of the new British Columbia Government House, Turner spent a considerable amount of time dancing with Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom, one year his junior. This would prove the first time that Turner received significant press attention in Canada, as there was considerable speculation that the two could become a serious couple. According to letters later uncovered by The Daily Mail, Margaret went so far as to consider marriage with the young Canadian before breaking off the relationship. Marriage between the two would have necessitated Margaret’s removal from the line of succession however, due to Turner’s Roman Catholicism. Instead, Turner wound up marrying Geills McCrae Kilgour on May 11th, 1963, who was a grand niece of Canadian Army Doctor John McCrae, author of the probably best known First World War poem “In Flanders Fields”. The couple reported a deeply loving, happy marriage, and would go on to have four children together: Elizabeth, David, Michael, and Andrew.
Initially, Turner practiced law in Montreal, though he quickly moved on to his true passion in politics, becoming a Liberal member of Parliament in 1962. Seen as the “Golden Boy” of the Liberal Party from the moment he entered Parliament, Turner seemed to have every factor pointing in his favor. He was a talented athlete, scholar, a successful lawyer, and had developed considerable political networks across the country by the time he came to Ottawa to serve. He quickly earned the respect and admiration of his peers during his time in the cabinet of Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, and then as Minister of Justice under Pierre Trudeau. Showing a “restraint and respectful demeanor” which belied his young age, Turner was quickly taken under Trudeau’s wing upon the latter’s election to party leader and treated as something of a protege. The plan seemed to be for Trudeau to groom Turner to be his loyal right hand man as Minister of Justice, though this all went out the window when Trudeau was assassinated. Quickly securing his position and vowing to lead his nation through this difficult, trying time, Turner actually managed to do a decent job of bringing the country together. He acted swiftly within his Liberal - NDP coalition and with opposition leader Robert Stanfield of the Progressive Conservatives to support the investigation into Trudeau’s death, and then shifted his focus onto leading Canada forward. Though the economy, foreign affairs, and several other issues dominated Turner’s to do list throughout 1970, a crisis brewing at home leapt ahead of all of them and ate up the majority of his attention come October.
From 1963 through 1970 the Quebec nationalist group Front de Liberation du Quebec detonated over 95 bombs across the country. While mailboxes - particularly in the affluent and predominantly Anglophone city of Westmount - were common targets, the largest single bombing occured at the Montreal Stock Exchange on February 13th, 1969. The incident caused extensive damage and resulted in 27 people being injured. Other targets included Montreal City Hall, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, armed forces recruiting offices, railway tracks, and army installations. FLQ members, in a strategic move, had stolen several tons of dynamite from military and industrial sites, and financed by bank robberies, they threatened through their official newsletter that more attacks were to come. By 1970, 23 members of the FLQ were in prison, including four convicted of murder. On February 26th, 1970, two men in a panel truck - including Jacques Lanctot - were arrested in Montreal when they were discovered with a sawed off shotgun and a communique announcing the kidnapping of the Israeli consul. In June, police raided a home in the small community of Prevost, north of Montreal in the Laurentian Mountains, and found firearms, ammunition, 300 pounds of dynamite, detonators, and the draft of a ransom note to be used in the kidnapping of the United States consul. This raid and the prior bombings brought the issue of Quebecois nationalism to the forefront of Canadian consciousness, and forced both the Liberal and Progressive Conservative parties to consider their positions on how to combat the rising tide. Prime Minister Turner, much like his predecessor, considered the Quebec Liberation Movement to be utterly without basis, and decried the actions of the FLQ as “nothing more than cowardly displays of terrorism”. Seeking to strengthen ties between Anglo and Francophone Canadians, Turner pushed ahead with a multicultural agenda, and delivered monthly radio addresses in both English and French.
These seemed to make some progress toward easing tensions, though they shot up again in earnest when on October 5th, a true crisis started brewing. In Montreal, two members of the “Liberation Cell” of the FLQ kidnapped British diplomat James Cross from his home. The kidnappers disguised themselves as delivery men bringing Cross a package for his recent birthday. Once the maid let them into Cross’s residence, they pulled out a rifle and a revolver and took him hostage at gunpoint. This was followed by a communique to the authorities containing the kidnappers’ demands, which included the exchange of Cross for several “political prisoners”, a number of convicted or detained FLQ members, and the CBC broadcast of the FLQ Manifesto. The terms of the ransom note were the same as those found in June for the planned kidnapping of the U.S. Consul. At the time, the RCMP did not connect the two.
This was followed on the 8th by the authorities-approved broadcast of the FLQ Manifesto in all English and French-speaking media outlets in Quebec. Two days later, members of the “Chenier Cell” of the FLQ approached the home of Minister of Labour of the Province of Quebec, Pierre Laporte while he played football with his nephew on the front lawn. Threatening to shoot Laporte’s nephew if he did not come with them, the Chenier Cell took the Minister of Labour prisoner, and forced him to write a letter in captivity to Robert Bourassa, Premier of Quebec, asking him to meet the FLQ’s demands in exchange for his release. The next day, the 11th, the CBC broadcasted Laporte’s letter to the whole nation, and calls began to pour in for the Federal government in Ottawa to act. Prime Minister Turner did not take these flagrant acts of violence lying down, and ordered General Gilles Turcot to send troops from the Royal 22nd Regiment to guard Federal property in and around Montreal. Lawyers were then appointed on both sides of the conflict to act as negotiators, though there was little hope that a compromise could be reached.
As the lawyers argued over the FLQ’s right to negotiate with the Federal Government at all on the 13th, Prime Minister Turner gave a tense interview with Tim Ralfe of the CBC about the military presence in Montreal and what steps were being taken to ensure public safety. Turner avoided being combative with Ralfe, and focused on doing what he could to ease the public’s worries on the matter, saying “Our great nation has survived far worse crises than this. I regret that military forces must be deployed domestically in this way, but believe me when I tell you that their purpose is not to intimidate or to hurt, but rather to keep the peace. Nothing more.”
Though Ralfe accused Turner of going too far with the deployment of troops, public opinion stood nearly united behind the PM, especially after a rally in support of the Quebecois opposition at the University of Montreal was held on the 15th. At this rally, labour leader Michel Chartrand announced that popular support for the FLQ was rising and stated "We are going to win because there are more boys ready to shoot members of Parliament than there are policemen!” The rally and Chartrand’s comments frightened many Canadians, who viewed them as a prelude to full blown insurrection in Quebec. 3,000 students jointed Chartrand in a march through Quebec City after the rally, and thousands remained hidden in their homes, fearing violence. Fed up with the attacks and the fear mongering, Quebec’s government wrote Turner on the morning of the 16th formally requesting that the Government of Canada grant them “emergency powers” that would allow them to “apprehend and keep in custody” individuals suspected of association with the FLQ. This resulted in the first peacetime implementation of the War Measures Act in Canadian history, allowing for the suspension of habeas corpus, and giving wide reaching powers of arrest to the police. These measures came into effect for the entire Province of Quebec at 4:00 AM on the 17th, with Prime Minister Turner making a broadcast explaining his reasoning for issuing the command. Later that morning, the Chenier cell of the FLQ shocked the nation by confirming that their hostage, Pierre Laporte, had been executed. Though police reports would conflict as to whether Laporte’s death was an accident or intentional, Prime Minister Turner considered it a display on the part of the FLQ that they wanted to be taken as a serious threat, and thus decided that the time for negotiation had come to an end. This was the last straw.
Over the course of the next several weeks, Montreal was put under complete occupation by local police, the RCMP, and the military, with the Premier of Quebec declaring martial law and raids of suspected FLQ bases happening almost every hour, on the hour, until the remaining hostages were located and rescued. By Christmas of 1970, the British Trade Commissioner and other hostages had all been freed, and Turner declared that all Federal troops stationed in Quebec would be set to leave by the second week of January, 1971. Across all of Canada, the people breathed a collective sigh of relief as the violence and bloodshed seemed to finally be at an end, and normalcy could reign once again in Montreal. Though the war-like measures employed by the Canadian government were effective in finally putting a lid on the October Crisis, and many praised the young Prime Minister for his “efficient and forceful” resolution to the hostilities, many others, including Opposition Leader Robert Stanfield accused him of “overreaction” as hundreds of Canadians had been forcibly detained under the War Measures Act, and dozens more lay dead or wounded. Troops and tanks being positioned by Turner’s government on Canadian soil and aimed at Canadian citizens was not a great image, no matter how violent or political the protests were. In Quebec itself, many declared that if anything, Ottawa’s reaction of force against the FLQ was little better than that of the terrorists themselves, as all five of the FLQ ringleaders behind the Crisis were shot and killed by the military during scheduled raids, despite orders from the top to do everything possible to bring them in alive. The cultural divide between Anglo and Francophone Canadians seemed greater than ever in the wake of the violence, and before long, the Great White North would see whether or not those FLQ leaders would go on to be considered martyrs in the great struggle for an independent Quebec.
Next Time on Blue Skies in Camelot: President Romney Plays Politics and Plans a War
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Glad you're back.
Churchill may have won, but, he has his work cut out for him.
Churchill may have won, but, he has his work cut out for him.
Thank you, historybuff!
My trip was excellent and much appreciated, but it feels good to be back as well. Churchill is walking into a very difficult time for the UK. If he wants his place in the history books, he's going to have to earn it, fighting tooth and nail all the way.
Great to see you’re back! With Churchill PM by a narrow majority, he’ll need to ensure that his policies don’t grant the Opposition fuel to attack or unify against. This will definitely affect how he handles Rhodesia.
Thanks @TheImperialTheorist!
Great to be back. I couldn't agree more with your analysis of Churchill's precarious position. He boldly charged ahead expecting a landslide and was instead met with fierce competition and a nearly hung Parliament. Powell may very well see his stock rise once again, now that the new PM is learning that he can't just write Powell off and not expect consequences.
However, Powell should learn that since he didn't become the kingmaker he wanted to, he better not anger the already angry party leadership for his sudden betrayal. All is not well in the Thames, but all is not lost either
.Ah what the heck. This is BSIC we know the good side will win!
thatsbunkers
Banned
If there’s just a few byelections Churchill will have to enter a coalition with the liberals. That did not go well for labour when they had to do it in the 70s.
However, Powell should learn that since he didn't become the kingmaker he wanted to, he better not anger the already angry party leadership for his sudden betrayal. All is not well in the Thames, but all is not lost either
Ah what the heck. This is BSIC we know the good side will win!
Great points, sir! Powell's place in British politics will largely depend on whether Churchill bends and allows him back into the Conservative's ranks, or stands firm.
Thanks Nerdman!
Glad to get back to the Alternate 70's with all of you. thatsbunkers
Banned
There's always the possibility of him making a third party (or threatening to if he wants to get something out of Wilson or Churchill). He would be able to get a lot of voters from both parties, probably get at least more seats than the liberals.
It would however isolate himself politically and all he would do is weaken the Labour party by talking seats up north and perhaps in Wales as well. That would be a modernist Tories dream.
Powell would more likely maintain his kingmaker status; "If I bolt this ship's sinking with me".
Even thought the Canada part is quiete serious, but this random note really made me laugh.
Also really enjoy the rest of the story.
BP Booker
Banned
Uff that was much worse than the real October Crisis right? ITTL it really sunk a lot of support for direct action for Quebec indepeance but here it may help to strengthen it in the ballot box, we may see an earlier independence referendum or have it be much closer or succed in 1980
thatsbunkers
Banned
1980 wasn’t exactly an independence referendum it was for more sovereignty but not necessarily independence. The Quebec nationalists might use the government using emergency powers as an example of federal overreach and a reason Quebec needs more autonomy though
Thanks @scretchy!
Whoops on the typo lol I know there's always a few that slip through the cracks. Glad it managed to give you a laugh.