How the U.S legacy of slavery led us to Trump’s America |Rudolph (Butch) Ware | UNAPOLOGETIC

In this episode, historian Professor Rudolph “Butch” Ware joins us for a conversation about the global system slavery built — and how its legacy still shapes the modern world. He breaks down the myths we’ve been taught about abolition, the spiritual legacy of resistance, and how white supremacy was not just a byproduct of history, but an architecture that still defines our institutions. We also talk about Gaza, the erasure of truth in public life, and how protest and free speech are being crushed in the U.S. Butch is running for governor of California, so we ask him if this is the best way to make change, considering that he is operating in a political system that often rewards self-promotion and aggrandisement over fundamental reform. UNAPOLOGETIC is Hosted by Ashfaaq Carim Chapters 00:00 The hidden hands behind the slave trade 03:00 The scale of the Euro-American trade 06:15 Slavery and modern capitalism 09:05 Europe's underdevelopment of Africa 11:50 Early African resistance 14:00 Commodifying African bodies as currency 16:15 How European slavery was brutally different 19:00 Sexual violence and trauma under slavery 22:00 Destroyed families, lost spiritual legacies 24:40 Guns, warlords, and destabilised Africa 27:15 The myth of British abolition 30:05 African Muslims fight against slavery 33:30 Gaza and the legacy of colonial brutality 36:40 White supremacy: These aren’t people 39:30 End of empire 42:00 Campus repression and the imperial boomerang 45:00 Malcolm X and the betrayal of liberalism 48:00 Why Butch joined the Green Party 52:15 From mobilising to organising 55:00 California 2026: Breaking the duopoly 60:00 A revolutionary political strategy 65:00 Truth-telling vs politcal lobbying 70:00 Student resistance and corporate campuses 74:00 A generation that’s built different 77:00 The urgency of third-party power 80:00 A final word on faith and freedom Catch MEE LIVE, our new biweekly live news programme, where we take a look at the news shaping our world through breaking coverage, expert analysis and hard-hitting interviews. MEE LIVE: Tuesday & Thursday | 12pm ET | 5pm BST | Join the conversation at [email protected] Support stories that matter. Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR0fZh5SBxxMNYdg0VzRFkg/join Subscribe to our channel: http://ow.ly/AVlW30n1OWH Subscribe to MEE Telegram channel to stay up to date: https://t.me/MiddleEastEye_TG Middle East Eye Website: https://middleeasteye.net Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@middleeasteye Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/MiddleEastEye Like us on Facebook: https://facebook.com/MiddleEastEye Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MiddleEastEye