Yo, Ho

Pirates. Until a few years ago, we had only good associations with the salty thieves thanks to joy-filled rides on Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean. But consider the real-life pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia. There’s nothing like the sight of a ship full of sneering men with assault...

By Amanda McCorquodale

September 15, 2011

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Pirates. Until a few years ago, we had only good associations with the salty thieves thanks to joy-filled rides on Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean. But consider the real-life pirate attacks off the coast of Somalia. There’s nothing like the sight of a ship full of sneering men with assault rifles in your cruise ship’s wake to make you forget about affable Captain Jack Sparrow. As a result, the local myth of Black Caesar is more than just an excuse to drink more rum and talk more booty. No, the more we learn about this escaped African slave who ambushed trade ships around Elliott Key, the more we think he was a truly bad guy. In addition to the extensive treasure he pirated, it seems Caesar was after another type of booty as well . It’s rumored he had more than a hundred women imprisoned at his makeshift home of an island. Of course, that is just hearsay, and when the alternative is slavery, you can’t really fault a guy for choosing an illicit life. Separate truth from myth this Sunday at 2 p.m. when Nathanial Samuels talks “Pirates of the Caribbean” at HistoryMiami.
Sun., Sept. 25, 2 p.m., 2011

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