DeepSummary
The podcast episode discusses the Chagos Islands, a remote archipelago in the Indian Ocean that was once home to a self-sustaining population descended from formerly enslaved Africans. The islands were portrayed as a tropical paradise with a unique culture, language, and way of life that developed over generations.
After World War II, the United States sought to establish military bases on remote islands to project power globally. An official named Stuart Barber identified the Chagos Islands as a prime candidate for an air base. The British Empire, in the process of decolonization, made a secret deal with the U.S. to depopulate the islands and lease Diego Garcia to the U.S. military in exchange for a discount on nuclear missiles.
Internal documents from British officials reveal their racist attitudes towards the Chagossian people, dismissing their culture as primitive and denying their very existence on the islands. Despite acknowledging the need to lie about depopulating the islands, the British government proceeded with plans to forcibly remove the inhabitants.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The Chagos Islands were home to a unique indigenous population descended from formerly enslaved Africans who developed their own culture, language, and way of life over generations.
- The United States sought to establish military bases on remote islands after World War II to project global power during the Cold War.
- The British Empire made a secret deal with the U.S. to depopulate the Chagos Islands and lease Diego Garcia to the U.S. military in exchange for a discount on nuclear missiles.
- Internal documents from British officials reveal racist attitudes towards the Chagossian people, dismissing their culture and denying their existence on the islands.
- The British government proceeded with plans to forcibly remove the Chagossian population from the islands, destroying their unique culture and way of life.
- The depopulation of the Chagos Islands was driven by strategic military interests and a desire for the British to maintain a semblance of their fading empire.
- The story highlights the human cost of imperialism, militarism, and the disregard for indigenous cultures by powerful nations.
- The episode exposes the truth behind the depopulation of the Chagos Islands, which was hidden from the public for decades through lies and cover-ups by British and American officials.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “He's like magneto of Mapness.“ by Andrew T.
- “Unfortunately, along with birds, go some through few tarzans or man Fridays whose origin are obscure.“ by British Foreign Office official
- “The status of women committee does not cover the rights of birds. And he's saying this because a kind of bigoted term for women is to call them birds.“ by Robert
- “There will be no indigenous population except seagulls, who have not yet got a committee.“ by British foreign officer
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Episode Information
Behind the Bastards
Cool Zone Media and iHeartPodcasts
6/18/24
Robert welcomes Andrew Ti back to the show to tell the story of the Chagos Islands, a paradise founded by former slaves that was wiped out by the British empire so they could lease it to the U.S. as an air base.
(2 Part Series)
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Sources:
https://archive.is/KvGqw#selection-1769.0-1781.535
Vine, David. Island of Shame: The Secret History of the U.S. Military Base on Diego Garcia (p. 18). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2019/2/25/how-britain-forcefully-depopulated-a-whole-archipelago/
https://archive.org/details/webofdeceitbrita0000curt/page/432/mode/2up?q=chagos
https://journals.openedition.org/oceanindien/2003
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