Dear US Secretary of State John Kerry, We, the undersigned, request that for once the US acts as honest broker in the latest Israel-Palestine peace talks. In your role as mediator, you have a historic opportunity to advance the cause of peace. You will no doubt come under huge pressure to provide yet another smokescreen to hide the reality of Israel’s ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians. But the plight of the Palestinians cannot be ignored, and a fair and just solution is central to peace in the Middle East, and beyond. Our global village will not be built on the sins of occupation. In your negotiations, Israel will dodge, bluster, and dissemble to keep its ill-gotten gains. It will make outrageous demands, and when these cannot be met, claim that negotiations are futile, and violence the only option. But oppression is not an option we tolerate; the last ten years has witnessed the abject failure of state violence to achieve anything of note. 50 years ago today, Martin Luther King came to Washington in peace to demand an end to racism. Like millions of African Americans, the Palestinians too have been “seared in the flames of withering injustice”. Today, like King we also ask, is the American bank of justice bankrupt? Are its promissory notes worthless? Secretary of State, the task in front of you is onerous. But the ideals enshrined in the US constitution are universal, and we request they be placed centre table in the negotiations ahead. Statesmanship is needed, not allegiance to the discredited policies of colonialism. We, the undersigned, also request that you remind Israel and its supporters that the Palestinians are not alone when they come to the negotiating table. Global civil society is firmly on their side, and we will view very dimly any attempts to deprive the Palestinians of what is rightfully theirs. [Please fill in your name and email address below and then "submit"]