by John Reid

If you’re like most people, chances are you’ve seen the Netflix apocalyptic thriller “Leave The World Behind,” which debuted on December 8. Based on the acclaimed novel by Rumaan Alam, it is the story of a pair of families trying to piece together the truth as the United States comes under a cyberattack. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, (WARNING: SPOILERS) there were several interesting points of historic references made in the movie that might have been missed.

Two of them were in the very beginning, as the family is headed for their surprise retreat for the weekend in New York. As they approached the exit, there were two signs. The one of the left was for Fort Mose, and the other was for Point Comfort, where they eventually headed. There’s just one thing: neither of their actual locations were in New York.

What’s Point Comfort?

You may have heard of the “The 1619 Project,” which is the New York Times Magazine’s award-winning reframing of American history that placed slavery and its legacy at the center of our national narrative. Written by journalist, author and professor Nikole Hannah-Jones, it details how slavery continues to permeate into the social structure today. According to historical records, on August 20th, 1619, the first Africans to be sold as chattel arrived at Point Comfort on the coast of southeastern Virginia. Keep in mind there were already Africans in the country as both free and indentured servants from the 1500s and Black people from other nations, such as those who were from the Spanish tribe the Moors.

What you may have noticed in the movie during the ship crashing on the beach was the name of the ship, which was the ‘White Lion.’ That was the name of the privateer ship which carried the 20 or so Africans to be sold into slavery. A second privateer ship, the Treasurer, docked at Point Comfort a few days later, bringing more Africans to the coast to be sold.

What’s Fort Mose?

Located near St. Augustine, Florida, Fort Mose has its own share of history. In 1738, more than 100 enslaved Africans escaped the British colonies in Georgia and South Carolina. Making the 300-mile trek, they were granted asylum by the Spanish in exchange for conversion to Catholicism and to serve in their military. Later, Fort Mose became the first legally sanctioned free African community in the United States. It is now a historic park, with many dedications to those who bravely set out for their own new world.