From: Peter Meyers
Sent: Thursday, 05 November 2026 04:29:26
To: Lydia Hendricks; Rudel A Hodge Jr; Arturo Watlington Jr; Akima Richardson; Devin F Carrington; Imani Daniel; John M Canegata ; Liliana Belardo De O'Neal; Rupert W Ross Jr; Patricia Welcome; Stedmann Hodge Jr ; Alicia M Wells; John J Abramson Jr; Usie Ramond Richards; David SilvermVIan
Cc: Mark Hodge; J.H. Snider; Bonny Corbeil; Sennai Habtes; Hadiya Sewer; Kaj N. Gumbs
Subject: Fwd: Keep the momentum for change going by releasing to the public the draft of the sixth constitutional convention

Good morning CC6 Delegates,

I hope you are well.

Yesterday I wrote and submitted this oped piece to the St. Thomas Source.  My objective was to make it public in the hope that it would resonate with some community leaders whose opinion you might respect.  I have heard nothing from the Source so I think that will not happen.  Of course you are the real target of my letter and I am sharing it with you so that you have advance notice if it should ever see the light of day.

With sincere gratitude and admiration for all that you are doing for the people of the Virgin Islands,

Peter Meyers

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Peter Meyers
Date: Wed, Nov 4, 2026 at 3:55 AM
Subject: Keep the momentum for change going by releasing to the public the draft of the sixth constitutional convention
To: <visource@gmail.com>

Dear St. Thomas Source Editor,

My name is Peter Meyers.  I am a resident of St. Croix and I voted in this election.

I respectfully submit this letter for your consideration.

Peter

4 November 2026

Polls are closed and votes are counted.  The coalition of “The Future” candidates have made a remarkable showing.  The candidates themselves are millennials but those who elected them span all ages.  My takeaway message is that Virgin Islanders are ready for something new.  The quagmire issues of dysfunctional WAPA and a broken health care system are deeply rooted and are not going to be turned around by tweaking the present system.  Virgin Islanders are calling out for new approaches and these election results are a fantastic start.  Hopefully there is more to come.

Since early 2025 the fifteen delegates of the Sixth Constitutional Convention have been creating a breakthrough constitution for the Virgin Islands.  For more than a year I have listened in on many committee meetings and have been awed by the idealism, creativity, insights, analysis, careful work and consensus-building of the delegates.  In meetings every voice was heard and every idea fully explored. Input from members of the public in attendance was encouraged and respected.  Then sometime early this year there was a decision made to subject the draft to legal review.  I cannot say whether it was cause and effect, but since about that same time public access to convention meetings has been greatly restricted.  A few weeks ago we had a peak behind the curtain when delegate leaders and their legal counsel reported to the Senate and where Senators asked – as they have every right and obligation to do- for information about the current draft.  The Senators were given some information, but the draft has not yet been shown to the public.

A constitutional convention is a vehicle for the people to bypass the three branches of government and to state directly how they want their government to be structured.  Ideally it represents the voice of the people.  In order to speak effectively, however, the people need not only to see the new constitution but every individual needs to be allowed to express their concerns and make suggestions.  That has not yet happened.  I do not pretend or even want to guess as to why that discussion is not happening.  I do suspect that vested interests including political parties and the representatives and officers of government who gained their positions of power under the present system may be reluctant to see that system of government changed.  I encourage those who favor the status quo to make their case, but I believe they should make their case in public for all to hear.  It is time for the people to be heard.

To the delegates I say – show us what you have done.  I personally think you should be proud.  If there are flaws, let us correct them.  If there are better ideas, let us incorporate them.  You are an amazing group of people but your work is not done.  We the people of the Virgin Islands have shown by this election that we want to make our government more effective and to have it better serve the people.  Help keep the momentum of this recent election going.  Make the draft constitution public and listen to what we the public have to say.

Peter Meyers