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"With
Liberty & Justice For All"
2nd annual Liberty & Justice Festival
May 1, 2004 -- Ozark Mountains, Arkansas
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On Mayday, as a
group of us dined on campfire toasted marshmallows, kept mind of
children dodging raindrops to splash in the creek, and lamented the
sorry state of world affairs between bites of homebaked chocolate
chip cookies, the families of four of our finest young Arkansans
received the news that their loved ones would not be coming home
from battle.
This contrast is
bitter and tragic.
And though it is
no compensation at all to those families or any others who have
forfeited the treasure of companionship at the altar of liberty &
justice, it was as though Mother Nature herself spent the day
weeping... because it rained. And then it rained. And then it rained
more. |
Above (L-R): Joshua
Weiss (age 12) of Shirley, Arkansas, toasts marshmallows with Robert
Reed, Chairman of the Arkansas Libertarian Party,
on the banks of Cove Creek.
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Those of us who defied
the weather to dampen our spirits set up a little caravan of
awning-tents, lined up side-by-side overlooking Cove Creek which was
beautifully draped in shimmering mist. |
| It was more than
pleasant, being able to walk through the tent-tunnel and stay dry,
all the while being serenaded by the acoustic guitar stylings of
Matt Sturdivant and
lavished with the kinship of like minds. |
Above: Friendly faces and
familial hugs dazzled the day with warm-fuzzy smiles.
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Above (L-R): Russell W.
Patterson, regional organizer with United for a Fair Economy and
Mark Swaney,
coordinator of the Green Party of Arkansas.
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And yes, the public
turn out was much less than we organizers had hoped for. The
inclemency of the weather (and other extenuating circumstances)
warded off more than one of our expected exhibitors, including
For Mother Earth, Ark4Kucinich,
Women's Action for New Directions (WAND),
ArkIndyMedia,
Against The Wall, Center for Artistic Revolution (CAR),
The Hippie Shop, That Bookstore at Mountebanq Place,
ArkNORML, The Arkansas Legislative Black Caucus,
the
Ozark Regional Land Trust (ORLT),
Veterans For Peace, and Senior Democrats of Arkansas. |
| Still we know that they
were with us in spirit. And we
did have about 30 folks, in addition to the 14 folks or so who were
there as exhibitors and the 12 or 14 musicians who perform as
“Feedback” and Larry Huie’s “4:20 Band,” drift in and out.
But super-sadly, due to a personal
emergency, Willy-T (to whom we extend heartfelt thankfulness for
everything he did to assist with coordinating the event) was not
able to join us.
At right: Will "Willy-T"
Taylor, performing at the first
Liberty & Justice Festival, held May 3, 2003. |
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Around 4pm, with the
rain unrelenting and a chilly breeze nipping our cheeks, we decided
that it was time to move the shindig indoors, so-o-o-o-o...
We packed up the whole kit-and-caboodle and headed down to a private
club house in Choctaw, where both of the bands who were scheduled to
perform at the festival set-up and started rocking the house.
Above: Musicians
jam-session at Choctaw club house concluded the day's events. |
| A bunch more folks
joined in the festivities at the clubhouse which featured Rex Petty
making a short and highly articulate speech, declaring that "the
most dangerous things about marijuana are the laws prohibiting it"
and that "the Arkansas Chapter of the
U.S. Marijuana Party is now officially organized!!!"
His comments were met by a boisterous
round of hootin', hollerin', foot-stompin' and applause, subsequent
to which the bands played on far into the wee hours of the night.
At right: Rex Petty,
spokesperson for the Arkansas Chapter of the U.S., Marijuana Party. |
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Above: David Lower,
proprietor of
Serenity Farm.
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On behalf of all those
who participated in organizing, producing and/or attending the 2nd
annual Liberty & Justice Festival, we wish to extend extra-special
thanks to Allan Hampton for providing at his own expense an
abundance of booklets on the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights,
and also a
Constitution Test. And
also our most profound gratitude is offered to David Lower,
proprietor of Serenity Farm, for granting us unfettered use of the
private park on Cove Creek which adjoins his U.S. Hwy. 65
location. |
| Below:
Serenity
Farm,
U.S. 65 bakeshop location, home of meticulously prepared, highest
quality and totally delicious pastries, breads, and healthful
goodies.
Host of the 2nd Annual Liberty & Justice Festival.
To visit the
downtown Leslie location of Serenity Farm,
click
here.
For more information about the
organizing efforts which culminated as this event, please see
PLANNERS MEET (February 2004),
PROPOSED PLAN OF
ACTION & CALL FOR CONSENSUS (December 2003), and the
proposal which convened this collaboration. |
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