A lot of black Americans really believe that America’s wealth was largely built on slavery, and that without slavery, we would not be the powerhouse we are today. I try to explain that our wealth is not built on the proceeds from the agricultural South, and that indeed is why the South lost the Civil War; they were actually the weakest link in the American stronghold. But they don’t want to hear it. No, no, America’s wealth is built on cotton production. Right.
Well right up to the 20th Century, Cotton is one of our greatest exports. The South thought that Cotton was their ace in the whole because the British textile industry was so dependent on it that they thought Break would break the Union blockade. What they didn’t count on was the flexibility of the capitalist system which was able to create new sources within three years.
Yes, and not only was that not true, but major portions of whatever wealth was created by slave labor was destroyed during the Civil War. It wasn't called reconstruction for no reason. Many parts of the South had to start over economically and it took most of a century for it to catch up with the rest of the nation.