uniquely inhuman and impersonal version of race relations

Certainly inhuman and impersonal, but sadly not unique. The Spanish and Portugese weren't any better than the English in how they ran Central and South America. And look up slavery internal to Africa and the Middle East, to find that Europeans were (to their mind) merely using a pre-existing system of trade. And for more inhuman and impersonal, look up Cetewayo or other historical African leaders, or even "Hutu" and "Tutsi". Or hell, look up "Orange Order" for what whites will happily do to whites from a different tribe.

Graham.