Galuszka, Peter. “A New Eye on History.” (2010)

Two years after the opening of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the $110 million center opened with exhibits on how enslaved African-Americans risked their lives to make the northward trek to freedom. Today, however, the center is shifting its focus while serving as an educational focal point, research asset and change agent. Area universities use it to research human rights, advance digital technology as a teaching tool and help train future educators. This article discusses how the center, in a new twist, has become a starting point for research and advocacy involving 21st-century slavery and human trafficking. The center spokesman Paul Bernish said that they try to convey that slavery didn’t end with the Civil War. Modern-day slavery can involve such events as young girls being kidnapped and forced into prostitution in India or Thailand, known for its sex tourism. Other forms involve forced labor. He added that the center helps lobby state legislatures such as Ohio’s to toughen laws and raise awareness.