Actor, Author In Tulsa For Freedom Award

An actor on a hit CBS show comes to Tulsa for a very special honor. Hill Harper plays Dr. Sheldon Hawkes on CSI New York.

On Saturday, he received the Sankofa Freedom Award at Rudisill Library. Harper is not just an actor, but has written several books as well.

Honored to receive the award, Harper had a special message for the crowd.

You can't be free if the cost of being you is too high," he said. "For so many of us, the cost of being who we are is very high, particularly in our community."

Harper graduated magna cum laude from Brown University. He earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a M.P.A. from the School of Government at Harvard.

He has also been in two Spike Lee films, "Get on the Bus" and "He Got Game."

The Sankofa Award is given out every two years to authors whose work has had an impact on the black community. The winner receives a special crystal plaque and $7,000.