The Partnership for Human Freedom, an initiative at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, is hosting a first-ever Ohio Statewide Meet-Up on Human Trafficking on August 27, 2008.

This event will bring together Ohioans who are involved in addressing local and regional human trafficking/contemporary slavery issues. Attendees include law enforcement, legal entities, social service providers, health care providers, nongovernmental organizations, faith-based organizations, survivors, etc. Attendees from anti-trafficking organizations in Indiana and Kentucky also have been invited to participate.

The Partnership for Human Freedom envisions the meeting to be an annual event to continue the American abolitionist tradition of seeking to end slavery, said Kathleen YS Davis, the Freedom Center’s Director of Contemporary Slavery Programs. The key, she said in a recent interview with CityBeat, is educating people that slavery is not only a problem on the other side of the world. “Unfortunately, slavery does exist today, Davis said. “It happens in Cincinnati. It happens in Ohio. It happens nationally, internationally.”

The one-day event is supported by several Ohio Anti-Slavery coalitions/agencies, including Second Chance of Toledo, End Slavery Cincinnati (Rescue & Restore), Central Ohio Rescue & Restore (Columbus), and Collaborative to End Human Trafficking (Cleveland).

For additional information about the meeting, contact Kathleen Davis at kdavis@nurfc.org.

Ohio State Senator Theresa Fedor (D-Toledo), along with Senator David Goodman (R-Columbus) and Representative Kathleen Chandler (D-Kent), has and continues to play a crucial role in addressing human trafficking in Ohio. All three leaders have introduced legislation in Columbus to combat human trafficking and raise public awareness of its presence in Ohio.

Recently, Senator Fedor agreed to blog about her personal view of the situation in the State. Her comments serve as a reminder that trafficking in human beings is not just a problem in faraway Indonesia or eastern Europe, but also right here in the Midwest. Here’s her post:

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