Founding Fatharrrrghs

When most people think of democracy in the New World, they think of a rag-tag band of rebels who stood up against a tyrannical British king. In truth, many important democratic principles were alive and well for a century or more before America's founding fathers began their great experiment. Ironically, the earliest democratically elected leaders in the Americas, pirate captains, are often portrayed as bloodthirsty tyrants in popular culture. Despite their brutality towards victims, the social contract in place aboard a pirate ship embodied many concepts that most of us learned about in Civics class.

Pirates Had a Written Set of Laws

Each pirate ship had its own "constitution" (usually called a charter) that established basic rules and responsibilities. The document outlined rules for division of plunder, punishments for common misdeeds, and other pressing topics of piratey importance. The charter was ratified by the crew and any pirate who wished to join the crew had to agree to abide by its terms. Like the U.S. Constitution, a ship's charter was viewed as a living document to be amended and interpreted to deal with unanticipated situations as they arose. Such "judicial review" of the charter was conducted by the entire crew, with each man having an equal vote in the decision-making process.

Pirates Practiced Separation of Powers

Many pirates got their start working on mercantile ships, where the captain actually did have near absolute power. Merchant captains regularly flogged, starved, underpaid, and otherwise mistreated members of their crews. As a result pirates, like Anti-Federalists and Fox News reporters, feared vesting too much power in a single office (at least when Democrats were in office). To curb the captain's powers, most charters specified that the captain's command was only total during battles, pursuits, and other situations that demanded fast, centralized decision-making. A second officer, the quarter master, was in charge of most day-to-day operations including distribution of plunder and supplies, settling disputes between crew members, and administering discipline. All ship's officers were elected and could be deposed at any time by a majority vote. Armed mutiny was not required, but was sometimes just too much fun to resist.

All Pirates Were Created Equal

Years before a slave-owning Virginian wrote some pithy flavor text about all men being created equal, pirates were actually practicing some degree of egalitarianism. Pirates often got valuable intelligence from slaves and as a result welcomed escaped slaves to their crews. And since any member of a pirate crew could be elected captain, it was not impossible for a black man to be chosen to command a mostly white crew (and this was centuries before Deep Space Nine). Also atypical of the time was the fact that rank aboard a pirate ship held very few special privileges. Aside from a larger share of the plunder (which was also given to specialists like carpenters and ship's doctors), the captain and other officers enjoyed very few perks. In fact, despite the common image from pirate movies, some captains didn't even have their own quarters, instead sharing living space with the rest of the men. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Pirates Had Workman's Comp

In a time when an on-the-job injury usually meant a life of poverty, begging, and rifling through sewage for shiny objects, pirates who were injured in the line of duty actually got a little something for their trouble. Each ship's charter outlined the amount of money a crew member would get if he lost an eye, arm, leg, or other body part while one the job. Such compensation (along with a few other operating expenses) was paid before booty was divided into shares. Some ships even offered death benefits to the families of those killed in the line of duty.

At first it might seem strange that so many democratic ideals could be found on a pirate ship. When you think about it, though, it makes a lot of sense. Most pirates chose their way of life as a way to escape the worst aspects of an oppressive, very stratified society, and were unlikely to mirror its worst elements when given a chance to form their own social orders. As for the captain, tyranny only really works when society at large reinforces it, or at least punishes those who fight back (which is why merchant captains could get away with treating their crews so badly). With no social structure backing them up, most pirate captains wisely decided not to offend the boatload of angry, armed criminals under their command.

Sources

"Pirates Pursued Democracy, Helped American Colonies Survive," Cathy Keen, Physorg.com

"Pirate Democracy: Guiding Spirit of the Founding Fathers," Bart Jones, Associated Press

"Everyone in Favor Say Yargh!, Joanna Weiss," Boston Globe

An-arrgh-chy: The Law and Economics of Pirate Organization, Peter Leeson (http://www.peterleeson.com/An-arrgh-chy.pdf)