Lena Tama for Flaschenpost

Pirates’ golden age from the 17th to 18th century is mired in romanticization and fantasy about how they fought against the European regime to seek justice or their barbaric plundering into villages to snatch golds and women to their ships. However, there lies hidden treasures beyond those stories, as the late David Graeber attempts to uncover the truth beyond the sea. Pirate Enlightenment, or the Real Libertalia discusses a thorough analysis into the origin of pirates, how Madagascar became the central point for warfares and politics, and how the son of an English pirate married into the local society to create a mighty army and an egalitarian society where pirates and Malagasy enjoyed the life of equality, peace, and stability for over thirty years.

Read more on the davidgraeber.org website