Harper Speaks To Minority Youth

It's important to reach young people.

As CSI Files previously reported, CSI: New York's Hill Harper (Dr Sheldon Hawkes) was the keynote speaker at the 25th Annual Minority Youth Conference, which took place at the University of Toledo in Ohio this past weekend. There were approximately 1200 students, parents and faculty members in attendance when Harper spoke. His main goal was to inspire students to pursue education and achieve their goals.

"Most adults undervalue young people," Harper said, as reported by the Independent Collegian. "They think all they want to do is play video games, and most young people I know aren't that way. Most of them want to learn, they want to be mentored, they want success." The actor said he comes across as "an 'older brother' type of figure" rather than "a judgmental parental figure", and that helps him get his message across to young people. "I think that the words I say are received in a way that feels more collaborative," Harper explained.

The actor also spoke in front of 100 students at an event organized by the Black Student Union (BSU) on Friday. Harper spoke about achieving success and overcoming obstacles. BSU president Treyken Addison, a senior majoring in law and social thought and sociology, said students were "attracted to his overall story." Addison went on to say, "If you look at him as an individual, coming from Iowa, going to a school like Brown University and then going to Harvard Law and getting dual degrees — that's phenomenal. For African-Americans, male and female, I feel like he is someone they can look at almost like a Barack Obama figure, and say to themselves 'we can do this.'"

The original article is from the Independent Collegian.

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