Note: This is a visual-heavy episode. You can watch the lecture here.The Arab Spring began in December 2010 when Tunisian street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi’s desperate protest against corruption sparked uprisings that swept across North Africa and the Middle East. Dr. Roy explores how these revolts evolved from Egypt’s mass protests to Syria’s devastating civil war, and why many of the revolutions failed to produce lasting democracy. Blending historical context, firsthand experience, and deep analysis, Dr. Roy examines how colonial borders, foreign interference, economic despair, and authoritarian endurance all contributed to the Arab Spring’s rise and collapse.Takeaways:How the Arab world’s diversity, language, and shared identity connect back to ancient civilizations, often written out of Western history.Why the fall of the Ottoman Empire and European imperialism set the foundation for modern unrest.How Egypt’s revolutionary history shaped the 2011 uprising and why the country’s workers, youth, and “Ultras” became key forces of change.The role of digital media and grassroots organizations in spreading revolt, and why the “Facebook Revolution” narrative oversimplified the truth.The rise and fall of Egypt’s short-lived democracy under Hosni Mubarak, Mohamed Morsi, and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.How the Arab Spring spread beyond the Arab world to Europe, Asia, and the United States through movements like Occupy Wall Street.The collapse of Libya, Yemen, and Syria, and how global powers, including the U.S. and Russia, deepened regional chaos.Why Tunisia stands as the lone partial success story and what its fragile democracy reveals about the long shadow of revolution.Resources & References: The Sykes-Picot Agreement The Egyptian Constitution of 1956Tunisia: Mohamed Bouazizi and the Jasmine RevolutionThe Six-Day War The Green Movement in Iran The United Arab Republic The Syrian Civil War and the Fall of AleppoOccupy Wall Street Manifesto Beyond the podcast: Want to watch this lecture? Check out the full video.Want to support the show? Buy Dr. Roy a coffee!
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1:47:13
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1:47:13
The Origins of the Syrian Crisis
The Syrian Civil War didn’t begin in 2011; it began centuries earlier. Dr. Roy explores how the legacy of empire, the carving up of the Middle East after World War I, and repeated Western interference destabilized Syria and Iraq long before the Arab Spring. Along the way, Dr. Roy connects the dots between the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the Sykes-Picot Agreement, the CIA’s 1949 coup in Damascus, the rise of pan-Arabism, and the creation of ISIS. Takeaways:Why the Arab Empire’s collapse and the rise of the Ottoman Empire set the stage for modern fragmentation.How the 1916 Sykes-Picot Agreement divided the Middle East into artificial borders serving European interests.The British and French betrayal of Arab independence after World War I - and the creation of Iraq, Syria, and Jordan as “made-up” states.How the CIA’s 1949 assassination of Syria’s democratically elected leader shattered the country’s early democracy.The rise and fall of pan-Arabism and the short-lived United Arab Republic (1958-1961).U.S. and Soviet competition for influence in the region during the Cold War, including coups and proxy wars. How the 2003 Iraq War, U.S. sanctions, and failed interventions paved the way for ISIS’s emergence.The Syrian Civil War, the refugee crisis, and how global powers continue to fuel instability today.Resources & References:The Sykes-Picot Agreement Treaty of Versailles The Balfour DeclarationCIA Coup in Syria United Arab Republic Constitution Eisenhower Doctrine The Six-Day WarIran-Iraq War (1980-1988)Iraq War (2003-2011)Arab Spring (2010-2011)Beyond the podcast: Want to watch this lecture? Check out the full video.Want to support the show? Buy Dr. Roy a coffee!
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1:50:41
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1:50:41
How Islam Saved Western Civilization
Western civilization didn’t vanish when Rome fell - it moved east. Dr. Roy explores how the libraries of Persia, Egypt, and Baghdad became the true heirs of the ancient world. From the Great Library of Alexandria to the Academy of Gundishapur, from Persian mathematicians to Arab engineers, this episode traces how Islamic civilization safeguarded humanity’s collective knowledge through centuries of turmoil. Dr. Roy connects forgotten innovations, the scientific method, algebra, optics, medicine, philosophy, and shows how the Islamic Golden Age laid the groundwork for modern science, governance, and thought.Takeaways:The myth of Rome’s “fall” in 476 AD, and why civilization actually shifted, not collapsed.How the Great Library of Alexandria inspired centuries of learning that continued under Persian and Islamic rule.The creation of the world’s first Bill of Rights by Cyrus the Great, predating the Magna Carta by two millennia.How the Academy of Gundishapur became a bridge between Greek, Indian, Persian, and Chinese knowledge.Why Arab scholars like Alhazen, Al-Khwarizmi, and Avicenna revolutionized optics, mathematics, and medicine.How Islamic thinkers preserved Aristotle and Plato, and later reintroduced them to Europe through Spain and Sicily.The invention of algebra, algorithms, and the scientific method centuries before the Renaissance.Why Western history omits the Islamic Golden Age, and how recognizing it changes our understanding of progress.Resources & References:The Book of OpticsThe Canon of MedicineThe Bill of Rights of Cyrus the GreatThe Great Library of AlexandriaThe Antikythera MechanismThe Philosophy of Al-Farabi and Ibn SinaBeyond the podcast: Want to watch this lecture? Check out the full video.Want to support the show? Buy Dr. Roy a coffee!
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1:58:59
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1:58:59
A Brief Overview of the U.S. Presidency
What exactly is the job of the U.S. president? Dr. Roy traces the presidency from its constitutional origins through major turning points in U.S. history, exploring how each era redefined executive authority. He discusses the balance between leadership and restraint, the rise of presidential power through war and crisis, and how charisma, fear, and media have transformed the office into a symbol of national identity. Takeaways:Why the Founders designed a limited executive branch after rejecting monarchy.How George Washington set enduring precedents for presidential conduct.The evolution of presidential powers through war, reconstruction, and industrialization.The shift from congressional dominance to a “modern presidency” under Franklin D. Roosevelt.The rise of the “imperial presidency” and executive overreach after World War II.How media, from radio and TV to social platforms, reshaped public perception of leadership.The tension between charisma and competence in presidential politics.What the presidency’s evolution reveals about American democracy and its future.Resources & References:The U.S. Constitution, Article II (The Executive Branch)The American Presidency: A Resource GuideGeorge Washington’s Farewell Address (1796)The American Presidency ProjectThe President’s War PowersThe Evolution of the PresidencyBeyond the podcast: Want to watch this lecture? Check out the full video.Want to support the show? Buy Dr. Roy a coffee!
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1:56:32
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1:56:32
World War II: Part X - Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
*Listener discretion advised:This episode contains descriptions of violence, genocide, and other traumatic historical events that may be disturbing to some listeners. Please use discretion and take care of yourself while listening. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was not just a fight for survival; it was a moral stand against annihilation. In April 1943, Jewish resistance fighters in Nazi-occupied Poland rose up against the SS after learning the truth: that deportations were not leading to “resettlement” but to extermination. Dr. Roy explores the deeper historical context, from centuries of pogroms and racial ideology to the rise of the Nazis and the Holocaust, and recounts the final days of the ghetto with unflinching honesty and transparency.Takeaways:The difference between patriotism and nationalism, and how nationalism enables genocide.How centuries of antisemitism, from the Crusades to the Inquisition, laid the foundation for Nazi ideology.The rise of scientific racism, eugenics, and the myth of the “master race.”How the Warsaw Ghetto was created, starved, and ultimately revolted against Nazi occupation.The heroism of the Jewish Fighting Organization (ŻOB) and Jewish Military Union (ŻZW).The leadership of Mordechai Anielewicz and the moral courage of those who fought and died in the uprising.Why much of the world, including Allied nations, turned away from the Holocaust until it was too late.Lessons on moral responsibility and the danger of ignoring suffering today.Resources & ReferencesU.S. Holocaust Memorial MuseumPolin Museum of the History of Polish JewsBiography of Mordechai AnielewiczGhettos in Occupied EuropeThe Wannsee Conference and the “Final Solution”Auschwitz-Birkenau State MuseumUnited Nations Holocaust Outreach Programme – The Warsaw Ghetto UprisingHannah Arendt: “The Banality of Evil”Beyond the podcast: Want to watch this lecture? Check out the full video.Want to support the show? Buy Dr. Roy a coffee!
The Dr. Roy Casagranda Podcast is dedicated to unerasing the erased peoples of the world. Too often, history is written by the powerful, leaving entire communities, cultures, and truths out of the dominant narrative. This show seeks to tell those stories.Through these conversations, Dr. Roy digs for the truth, weeds out misinformation, and challenges conventional wisdom. The conversations span politics, world history, philosophy, and culture, always with an eye toward justice and a deeper understanding of where we've been, where we are, and where we are heading. This is the official podcast of Dr. Roy Casagranda and Sekhmet Liminal Productions, FZCO.
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