Michael HarriotVerified account

First they tried to force the Creole’s captain to take them back to Africa, but the captain was like: “Y’all got some Africa gas money?” Plus, without Google Maps, they’d probably have to print out directions from Mapquest and the ship’s printer was out of ink or something

Then one of the revolters said: “Aye Madison, did you hear that story about the Hermosa in the Bahamas? Maybe we should see what they’re talking about.” *Not a literal translation

So Madison and the slave rebellers get to the Bahamas and a bunch of black soldiers come on board. The captain tells the soldiers that the people were his property but the Bahamians attorney general was like: “y’all can go. You’re free now.”

And the enslaved Africans were like: “Go where? Man, we’re a thousand miles from home! We’re on the goddamned ocean! Aside from what’s on this ship, we ain’t even got no food.” And the Bahamian attorney general was like: “Y’all straight. Just go look outside.”

So they go above deck and look out on the ocean and witness something astonishing: The slave ship was surrounded by a “fleet” of tiny little boats manned by local Bahamians ready to take the revolters to freedom. They would be free forever.

But the Bahamians atty. gen. held 17 of the men responsible for the white dude’s death on the boat. It became an international incident. The US even tried to organize an attack to REENSLAVE THE SLAVES, but a Bahamian was looking out and warned them that white people were coming

When the people in the US heard about the revolt, they were OUTRAGED. They demanded a trial. The British agreed. But the Bahamians were like: “Well we don’t have an extradition treaty with those filthy slave traders, so the trial will have to be in the Bahamas.

Now they couldn’t be tried for murder because the British had already ruled that enslaved people could do whatever they deemed necessary to get free. So the Bahamians tried the Creole 17 for piracy.