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Actor Harry Lennix, who stars in ABC's political drama "Commander in Chief," was a featured speaker at Northwestern University's Chicago campus celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 16.

Lennix, a Northwestern alum (BSC '86) and native of Chicago, spoke about how the media has impacted the political and racial issues currently facing the nation as well as the contemporary civil rights agenda. He was joined by Deborah Mathis, Assistant Professor at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism Washington Program and Managing Editor of the Medill News Service Washington Bureau.

Lennix is an accomplished film, television and stage actor who has also starred in several movies, including the Oscar-winning film "Ray," "Get on the Bus," "The Human Stain," "Barbershop 2," and "Love and Basketball." In addition to his film career, Lennix made his mark on the small screen with his role as the legendary Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in Showtime's "Keep The Faith Baby." He has directed and appeared in stage productions across the country and was the first distinguished recipient of an Ollie Award for his portrayal of Malcolm X at the Goodman Theater in Chicago. Before becoming an actor, Lennix was an English and music teacher. He founded Legacy Productions with renowned director Chuck Smith in 1989. The company is dedicated to promoting significant works about the African American experience.

Deborah Mathis has a 30-year career in journalism, which has included service as a White House correspondent during the Clinton years and nationally syndicated columns. She has authored two books, "Yet A Stranger: Why Black Americans Still Don't Feel at Home" (Warner Books, June 2002) and "What God Can Do" (Atria Books, Simon & Schuster, June 2005), and field-produced, wrote, and narrated two nationally-aired documentaries: "Edukashun: The High Cost of Failure" and "Return of the Little Rock Nine." Mathis is frequently on the national and international speakers' circuit, and has made appearances on a variety of political and public affairs talk shows, including PBS's Frontline, ABC's Good Morning America, CNN's Inside Politics, NPR's All Things Considered, Dateline NBC, and Oprah.

The Chicago campus celebrations were presented by the DREAM committee in collaboration with the School of Law and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

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