In 1875 Confederate military officers from Dixie were recruited by Egypt to lead an invasion of Ethiopia, which could have led to an expansion of the slave trade.
 
So begins this riveting history by Gerald Horne...
 
U.S. imperialism has diverse roots, Indigenous dispossession and enslavement (predominantly) of West Africans not least. Yet, after the Civil War, numerous U.S. nationals decamped to Africa to resume enslavement—including the buying of Africans—often in league with Cairo. Enslavement of Africans in West Asia (the “Middle East”) actually predated the trans-Atlantic versions. Similarly, when massive petroleum deposits were discovered in today’s Iraq and Iran at the beginning of the 20th century, a budding U.S. imperialism was poised to benefit given its pre-existing role in the region.
 
To understand the roots of imperialism in the “Middle East,” this book is a great place to start. Pre-Order your copy before the rush begins!