Social Relations of Hell Rush

In terms of... Class, Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Race Relations

Due to the recently acquired wealth from the Hellmouth by the selected few who survived, Salt Lake City and the surrounding area have a rather rigid class system. There is a clear divide between those who were born rich or became wealthy from their trips to the Hellmouth, and those who do not even have a chance to get close to riches due to the face that the riches from Hellmouth are kept in the hands of very few people. When someone wants to make a trip down to the mysterious caverns to try their luck, they must be sponsored by someone in order to have everything they need for the trip such as a guide, the necessary tools, and a safe passage down the caves from those who fervently oppose people venturing into the caves. However, when a lucky prospector manages to get a sponsor for their trip, if they come back out alive from the caves, it will be the sponsor who receives majority of the wealth they come back with. Thus, making upward mobility between different classes almost impossible. Furthermore, tensions continue to rise between the two main factions that currently exist in the area—those who are for the Hellmouth such as the cultists who try to recruit people to venture into the cave, and preach about the divinity of the caves, and those who are vehemently against, such as the militant Christians who believe the caves to be satanic and do whatever they can to stop anybody who tries to explore them.

When it comes to gender equality in the area, it is neither here nor there. Women are generally accepted to be as capable as men yet a good amount of people still hold onto the views that they are delicate creatures when it comes to certain things, such as the exploration of the caves, and they would be safer if they remain at home. However, these views are mostly held by those who reside in the government compound or those who are part of the Mormon congregation. In various cults that exist around the area, women have a much more “equal” role to the men. Therefore, women who go against the norms by working or venturing down the caves can be met with indifference, arrogant dismissal, or acceptance depending on which part of the area they are from. With the recent rush to the Utah Territory after the discovery of Hellmouth, Salt Lake City and the surrounding area have a significant increase in men since most of the newcomers are soldiers or single travelers who generally tend to be men.

Much like gender equality, the opinion on any sexual orientations that is not heterosexuality is either met with indifference, acceptance, or completely rejected depending on the person due to different factions that exist within the area. So, it is best to keep any non-conformal relationships between only those who are involved and away from the prying eyes of neighbors. Aside from different orientations, polygamy is also practiced in the Mormon community, always in the form of a man with multiple wives. The U.S. government does not recognize or acknowledge the polygamous relationships that exist amongst the Mormons, but they begrudgingly turn their eyes away in order to focus their attention more on Hellmouth and its resources.

Relations between different races that exist within the area are not considered the best, but it is generally tolerant compared to other areas during the Reconstruction era. The lack of tension in race relations can be the result of the volatile class relations that continue to clash as more prospectors arrive in the Utah Territory. However, since the Civil War has recently ended, soldiers in the U.S. government are likely to be a bit more hostile than other factions when it comes to race, since the majority of the soldiers present still have memories of the war and some may harbor negative feelings towards people of color. Furthermore, there is also the unspoken expectation of the U.S. government protecting the locals and their wealth from any “hostile natives” or Mexican encroachment. Despite a slight tension with the government, it is still rather easy for minorities to find employment in town due to high demand for labor. After the Civil War, most of the black population has left the Utah Territory, making their numbers fairly low, and with the influx of American settlers, the nearby Native American populations have been pushed even further back. Thus, the contact between settlers and the Native Americans are rather limited. Albeit there still exist a handful of Native Americans who have been adopted out of child slavery and baptized in an effort to anglicize them in the Mormon community.