The Paradox of Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin

Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin was intended to revolutionize the cotton industry by reducing the labor required for separating the cotton fibers from the seeds. However, it had the opposite effect, leading to disastrous consequences for the nation's agricultural industry. The cotton gin made the processing and manufacturing of cotton much easier and more efficient, lowering prices and causing demand to skyrocket. This led to an increased demand for slave labor to grow and harvest cotton, perpetuating the slave trade and increasing the number of enslaved people in the United States. Whitney's invention was supposed to help the agricultural industry stop using slave labor, but it made the problem worse by making slave labor more common.