On February 16, 2013--in less than two weeks--independents from across the nation will be gathering in New York City for a national conference. Many of us will meet each other for the first time; many of us will be seeing old friends. Delegates will hear a keynote address by Jackie Salit, who has been conducting national conference calls with hundreds of independents over the last two years about the work they have been doing--from petition drives and litigation for open primaries, to meeting in local associations and speaking to the media. We will be hearing from new activists as well as veterns of the independent political movement. We will speak to each other and to the nation about who we are, what we are doing, and where we are going. Below is a newly-penned poem, "Onward," by my dear friend and colleague, Dr. Jessie Fields. The last line could not be more fitting for the occasion: "With ceaseless hearts on the ground transforming a nation we work anew and sing."
Onward
Ancient land a people walked side ocean shores round
Blue ridged mountain plains forest thick.
Locked in Europe’s sight, the screams of eras chains unbroken.
Nameless unknown outsiders widen the fiery lines of history as farmers led barefoot frozen
Slaves gave body and breath to insurrection, ancestors all, their blood in the soil.
Soul of a nation millions made full measures of devotion, the old songs of freedom sung the long hope of humankind.
With ceaseless hearts on the ground transforming a nation we work anew and sing.
-- Jessie Fields
