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The University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Speaker Series will tackle the tragedy of modern-day slavery on March 10.

Global investigative reporter and author John Bowe will present information gathered from exclusive interviews and eyewitness accounts and share his own commentary from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 10, in Reeve Union Ballroom, 748 Algoma Blvd.

Bowe authored the Pulitzer prize-nominated “Nobodies: Modern American Slave Labor and the Dark Side of the New Global Economy,” detailing his first-hand account of existing slave-like conditions in Oklahoma, Florida and the U.S. Commonwealth of Saipan.

“I think everything in this book plays out against this backdrop, worldwide,” said Bowe in a 2007 Carnegie Council interview on ethics in international policy. “This book is about three slavery cases here in the United States now, today. It sort of breaks them down into the little psychic components and labor law and human-rights law components.”

Speaker Series chair David Rathsack said selecting Bowe had to do largely with students’ interest in current events, which the committee knew from student surveys.

“While this is definitely more of an educational speaker, from our survey we found that students are interested in programs that deal with current events, which Bowe satisfies perfectly,” Rathsack said.

Rathsack also feels Bowe’s specific focus on globalization will help students better understand why UW Oshkosh is initiating more environmentally and socially responsible ideals.

“This program is connecting the dots,” Rathsack said. “It’s promoting a more socially responsible attitude which matches the University’s commitment to Fair Trade products.”

UW Oshkosh became the first Fair Trade university in the nation in spring 2008, thus affirming its support for the Fair Trade movement and committing to using and selling Fair Trade items whenever possible.

Attendees can expect to take away a deeper understanding of what really goes into supplying America with commodities people are so used to.

“After seeing the presentation, I hope students will think with a more socially responsible attitude and think twice about what it takes to provide certain consumer products” Rathsck said.

Tickets to the show are free for UW Oshkosh students with a Titan ID and $3 for the general public and can be purchased at the Student Leadership and Involvement Center in Reeve Union.