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Latino USA

‘Mexodus’: A Trump-Era Protest Musical Explores Underground Railroad to Mexico

Latino USA

My Cultura, Futuro and iHeartPodcasts

News, Documentary, Society & Culture, Politics

4.83.8K Ratings

🗓️ 19 April 2026

⏱️ 30 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

“If Hamilton is an Obama-era hope musical, we are a Trump-era protest musical," said Nygel D. Robinson, co-creator of “Mexodus.”  

“Mexodus,” a high-energy Off-Broadway show that explores a lesser-known part of U.S. history: the Underground Railroad, south into Mexico. In the 1800s, thousands of enslaved Black people fled to Mexico, where slavery had been abolished decades before the United States.

Maria Hinojosa speaks with “Mexodus” co-creators and stars, Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson, about what they hope their hit show can teach audiences today about cross-racial and cross-border solidarity.

Latino USA is the longest-running news and culture radio program in the U.S., centering Latino stories and hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa.

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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

No gloss, no filter, just stories.

0:11.4

Spoken without fear.

0:13.2

Person who is not generous can not be an artist.

0:16.0

The world will be at peace only when it is ruled by poets and philosophers.

0:20.9

Listen to my weekly podcast, the Pooja Abhaw show and the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

0:29.9

Come for the honesty. Stay for the fire.

0:36.7

Dear Latino USA listener, before we start, you should know that if you want to listen to this episode, add free.

0:44.1

Just join Futuro Plus.

0:46.3

And you can join for as little as $7 a month.

0:49.6

Joining also gets you behind the scenes access and and yes, some cheesemes.

0:55.4

So click the link in the episode description, and after you do that, then click play.

1:01.4

Let's go to the show.

1:06.9

Futuro.

1:18.5

About eight years ago, actor and playwright Brian Gihara came across an article on history.com.

1:21.0

It was something he had never heard about.

1:25.9

Here's what Brian read.

1:34.4

In the 1800s, thousands of enslaved black people fled slavery in the United States,

1:42.0

not by going north, but by going south, seeking refuge in Mexico, a country where slavery began to be outlawed in the late 1820s and was fully illegal by 1837.

1:50.4

When I found this article, I sat on it for a long time knowing that it wasn't completely my story to tell.

1:56.6

You see, Brian's parents, they're from El Salvador.

1:59.9

I have always been interested in immigration stories, especially border stories.

2:04.5

They came to the U.S. in the 70s.

...

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