Underground Railroad Conference Opens in Rochester ROCHESTER, NY (WXXI) - The Frederick Douglass Conference on the history of the Underground Railroad began in Rochester Friday afternoon with a call to recognize the vision of civil rights leaders through history.

Some three dozen of the leading historians studying the Underground Railroad are in Rochester this weekend. It's the city where Frederick Douglass founded the "Northstar" newspaper and helped lead the anti-slavery movement. In the mid-19th Century it was also a key stop for slaves escaping from the United States to Canada.

NPR journalist Juan Williams opened the conference by asking participants to think about the creative leadership of early civil rights leaders -- for instance, Frederick Douglass approaching President Lincoln and asking that Black soldiers be recruited into the Union Army. Williams says that laid the legal basis for Blacks to be considered as full citizens.

Williams said historians at the conference are trying to write a new chapter in a continuing book about racial, social and political paths in America.

Williams said it's exciting for young people to learn about what came before their time, because it gives them a chance to be inspired about what they can do with their lives.

Doctor David Anderson of the Rochester and Monroe County Freedom Trail Commission says the conference is about teaching today's generation about Rochester's history as a freedom center. © Copyright 2009, WXXI