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As we celebrate the life and legacy of U.S. civil rights leader Martin Luther King, we take a look back at another recent discussion of one of the biggest civil rights struggles of our time: the fight to liberate the Palestinian people. Not long ago, the UN Human Rights Council released the Goldstone Report, sharply condemning Israel's actions in the recent fighting between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza strip.

No matter what the news is, the response from TV news seems to be the same: quote Dick Cheney. We saw plenty of that this week, along with pronouncements that Democrats are doomed in 2010, complaints about progressives who've criticized the health care bill, and of course Tiger Woods.

Micha Kurz was an Israeli soldier during the second intifada, and when he left the military he co-founded Breaking the Silence, an organization that collects stories from members of the service (which is compulsory in Israel for young men and women) who served in the occupied territories. Breaking the Silence allows soldiers to confidentially speak out about the things they did and saw while in the military. Kurz is now with Grassroots Jerusalem, where he helps bring together grassroots social justice activists from across Israel.

International pressure is mounting on Israel to end the occupation. More than 1,000 filmmakers, actors, and writers recently called for a protest of the Toronto Film Festival’s spotlight on Tel-Aviv. You can read the Toronto Declaration here. Meanwhile an international boycott is growing. Neve Gordon, in a recent editorial, explains why it is time to boycott Israel.