We are Spartacus We are Bob

Written by Daniel John Dunevant on September 30, 2025, 11:28 am

We Are Spartacus. We Are Bob.

As I reflect on the September 28th Big Beautiful Bob Mob, I notice a striking parallel between our movement and that of Spartacus. Spartacus, taken from what is now modern-day Bulgaria, was forced into slavery by the Roman Empire and trained as a gladiator. His strength made him valuable, but his life—like those of other gladiators—was not meant to be long. Though treated better than most slaves, with access to food and women, gladiators had no freedom. They trained for one purpose: to die in the Colosseum.

Spartacus refused to accept this fate. With about 70 others, armed with nothing more than kitchen utensils, he fought back against his captors. His rebellion inspired tens of thousands of other slaves to rise in defiance against their oppressors.

A Modern Parallel

We are Spartacus. We are Bob. While our oppressors may not be as visible as Roman slavers, the American people today also bear injustice. As in Roman times, these injustices serve the elites—those who profit, who protect their power, who secure tax breaks and yachts at the expense of the poor.

"Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God."

What does this Christian Nationalist movement have to say about the poverty it inflicts on its own constituents? Do its leaders understand the contempt they draw from their God? The injustices are many, but like Spartacus’s rebellion, there is strength in numbers.

Modern Tyrants and Their Greed

Today’s tyrants are not Roman elites enslaving men for sport. Instead, they are modern elites who strip resources from the vulnerable to benefit the wealthy. One example is the elimination of federal funding for the Public Broadcasting Corporation (PBS). Years ago, Mister Rogers spoke against a cut that would have reduced PBS funding from $20 million to $10 million. He argued not just for children’s education but for their understanding, their emotional well-being, and their futures as well-adjusted adults.

Now, the threat of zero funding looms—a death sentence for programming that serves only the public interest. The loss would mean the end of children’s educational programming, the end of fact-based, unbiased reporting, and the erosion of media that exists to inform rather than to profit.

When information is driven by vested interests, the truth is replaced with narratives designed to serve bottom lines. Viewers become consumers instead of learners, and citizens are reduced to backers of corporate or political agendas rather than informed participants in democracy.

Standing Up for Humanity

We, the people, will not fight with violence. We will stand up for humanity—for love, for joy, and for justice. We will stand in defiance to protect the rights of others. We will stand for the democratization of imagination. And we will stand up for PBS, so that all may benefit from education, truth, and freedom of thought.

We are Spartacus. We are Bob.