Real Pirates | Exhibition Curators

Real Pirates: The Untold Story of the Whydah from Slave Ship to Pirate Ship

The Advisory Panel

Members of the exhibition’s Advisory Panel came together at the National Geographic Society headquarters for a two-day symposium to discuss many topics related to the subject matter and provide historical context for those topics. Some of the topics discussed included the rich and multifaceted history of the Caribbean trade routes, multiculturalism of early 18th-century piracy, the complicated relationship between the inhumanity of the slave trade and the violence and idealism of early 18th century piracy, and the cruel reality of life as a pirate versus the romanticized version depicted in popular culture.

Following the initial meeting, several members of the Panel have continued to serve in an advisory capacity to review both written and visual components of the exhibition. Additionally, the Advisory Panel worked with the organizers to develop ideas for supplementary educational and public programming.

Members of the Advisory Panel for Real Pirates:

Dr. Thomas C. Battle Director Moorland-Spingarn Research Center Howard University		Dr. John Fleming Vice President Emeritus for Museums Cincinnati Museum Center
Dr. Ira Berlin Distinguished University Professor Department of History University of Maryland		Dr. Robert L. Harris, Jr. Vice-Provost and Professor of African American History Cornell University
Dr. W. Jeffrey Bolster Professor Early American, Caribbean History University of New Hampshire		Dr. Marcus Rediker Professor of History University of Pittsburgh
Mr. Michael Cottman Senior Political Correspondent, REACH Media/Radio One		Dr. Faith Ruffins Curator Division of Home and Community Life Smithsonian Institution
Dr. Laurent Dubois Associate Professor of History Michigan State University		Dr. Michael Washington Chair, African Studies Department Northern Kentucky University
Dr. Wendy Wilson-Fall Associate Professor Department of Pan African Studies		Dr. Francille Rusan Wilson Associate Professor African American Studies Department University of Maryland

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