A Short Talk I was Privileged to Give at The People’s Agenda, Atlanta GA
http://mikopeled.com/2012/10/30/a-short-talk-i-was-privileged-to-give-at-the-peoples-agenda-atlanta-ga/ 
 Palestine was an Arab country for 1500 years and I am here today, the son of Jewish colonizers and oppressors, here to report to you that Israel does not represent the fine Jewish men and women who marched with Dr. King, it represents Jim Crowe and racism against which Dr. King and many of you fought, and to a large degree still fight to this day . King and many of you fought, and to a large degree still fight to this day. The prevalence of racism in Israel is such that it is far beyond the scope of this short presentation, but I want to present to you, indeed to beg of you to join me, and others like me in an effort to bring peace and justice to Israelis and Palestinians alike through justice and equal rights. When the great writer Alice Walker, who I am sure you know, honored me by writing the forward to my book, she said she found it to be “one of the most hopeful books she ever read on the issue of Israel and Palestine.” I know that the fate of Jewish people is close to your heart, both because of your faith and because you know what Jews had to go through in racist Europe. But I think you will agree that oppression, ethnic cleansing, violence and denying children water, rights and freedom is not the answer.No, the answer to peace in Palestine and Israel, which are two names for the same country, lies in the establishment of a real democracy with equal rights. This means the transformation of the Jewish state to a state of all of its people. While many in this country and indeed around the world believe in the right of Jews to have their own state, we must realize that when half of the population is not Jewish, a Jewish state cannot exist unless it is oppressive and racist. And it saddens me to tell you that this is precisely what Israel has become, racist and oppressive. 5.5 million Palestinians and 6.5 million Israeli Jews share the land but only Israeli Jews have a say, have rights, and enjoy freedom. Palestinians live under the shadows of the Israeli security system, which considers them as threat not because of their criminal record, not because of past crimes, not for any reason other than, they are Palestinian.