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Cotton Revolution
Simon Matra
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Cotton Revolution
There are several highlighting events in the history of African Americans, spanning
migration from Africa to the current freedom. While the journey has not been smooth, there have
been interesting events —blood and tears, joy and hope —that have shaped history. Interestingly,
very few history classes today teach the actual struggle that the race went through to achieve
equality. Among these events, the cotton revolution was a watermark in America. Black folks
made America so rich that the proceeds from cotton have never been toppled over to date
(Baptist, 2016). The cotton revolution was worth more than billions in that economy, factoring in
the inflation rates and the forex dynamics. Practically, America was the richest country on earth
as a result.
Interestingly, the net profit included the free labor offered by the enslaved people,
meaning that if the enslaved people were to be properly compensated, their cotton workers
would be millionaires! Enslaved people were the most valuable asset at the time. However, that
was not the case at the beginning of the 18th century. The southern states had invested their lands
in cash crops such as tobacco and sugarcane (History, 2020). Enslaved people tilled the land and
harvested the products under their white masters to fuel the production. However, tobacco and
sugarcane proved to be uneconomical given that they sucked out nutrients from the ground,
leaving it fallow for the next season.
Also, the amount of effort put into the farms was not equal to the profits afterward.
However, tides changed for the southerners at the close of the 18th century and the 19th. British
textile industries were in dire need of cotton. The demand was so high that they imported cotton
from other countries. Viewing this as an opportunity, southerners turned to cotton farming
(Locke & Wright, 2019). The labor required was equally intensive but more promising. The
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whites imported enslaved people from Africa and used them as free labor to ensure the success
of cotton farming. Some whites paid their slaves meager wages, but others did not bother. Seeing
the ridiculous returns from the exports, more farmers joined the wagon.
Notably, human labor processed cotton slowly, thus presenting a bottleneck in
production. Whitney invented the cotton gin to cure this problem, which was patented in 1794.
The gin hastened the production process, and more profits were realized. However, the
Northerners who had already embraced industrialization were not happy with slave treatment in
the south. The difference in perspective caused a cold war between the two regions. Eventually,
the civil war erupted, causing enslaved people to migrate from the southern states to the northern
states. While the war claimed many innocent souls, the result was liberation and freedom for the
enslaved people (Schnurr, 2019). However, some enslaved people decided to remain due to
family ties.
In conclusion, the cotton revolution was part of why the civil war was fought. This war
brought about many changes in America, including the fall of King Cotton. Also, it boosted
industrialization with more labor moving up north. More infrastructure was built to support the
shift and thus sparked the industrial revolution later on. Also, the war sparked a thirst for
freedom within the hearts of African Americans. Most notable figures such as Martin Luther
King civil rights activists hailed from the south. Their voice of reason led to the equality we
experience today in America. While full racial equality is yet to be realized, America has taken
bold steps to this point!
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References
Baptist, E. E. (2016). The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American
Capitalism. United States: Basic Books.
History, C. (2020). The Industrial Revolution: A Captivating Guide to a Period of Major
Industrialization and the Introduction of the Spinning Jenny, the Cotton Gin, Electricity,
and Other Inventions. United States: Captivating History.
Locke, J., & Wright, B. (2019). The American Yawp. Stanford University Press.
Schnurr, M. A. (2019). Africa's Gene Revolution: Genetically Modified Crops and the Future of
African Agriculture. United Kingdom: McGill-Queen's University Press.
