LYNN – Academy Award-winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. received a standing ovation from a crowd of more than 2,000 area middle school students Tuesday at the Lynn Memorial Auditorium before he even said a word.His 60-year acting career in stage, television and films speaks for itself, but Gossett’s personal mission to spread awareness against racism and violence is no act.”Look in the mirror and respect who you see,” Gossett told students. “You need to have self-respect before you can be capable of respecting those around you.”Achieving self-respect, according to Gossett, is the first step toward creating a healthier, prejudice-free future.”Self-respect starts with your elders,” says Gossett. “If you don’t know where you came from, than you won’t know where you’re going,” he says.Gossett formed the Eracism Foundation in 2006. The foundation is dedicated to fighting prejudice. Since then, he has committed himself to spreading awareness against racism, violence and ignorance in hopes of positioning individuals and communities toward a healthier future.”History is so important,” Gossett told students. “We need to get back to our roots. There’s so much you need to learn and information you need to know so you can all be exemplary citizens.”Gossett referred to racism as “a cancer” and said that ending racism needs to start with awareness of the subject at an early age.”Parents need to teach their kids at a young age that racism is not right,” he said. “It’s been practiced for so long that people think it’s true. We need to work toward creating a planet where racism doesn’t exist.”Gossett spoke briefly during Tuesday’s event about the history of his own life; growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y. after the Great Depression in a large Jewish community, later to star on Broadway at the age of 17.Gossett says his ego started to grow after that, but his grandmother kept him level-headed.”I thought I was all that,” he said. “Grandma said, ‘God will always be here. Calm down, let him run things for now.'”He continued by advising students to enjoy each day “for all it’s worth” and to “live a life according to the age you are.””Kids are trying to grow up faster than they should be,” he said.Gossett attended New York University on a basketball scholarship and was invited to try out for the Knicks, yet he decided to continue his acting career with a role in the Broadway production of “A Raisin in the Sun.”Intrigued with the fact that Gossett turned away from his potential professional basketball career, one student asked during a later question and answer session, “Do you regret your decision?”Gossett replied, “Not at all. Now I get to sit in the front row,” receiving an echo of laughter from the energized audience.He touched upon his later roles in film and television, perhaps best known for his role as Gunnery Sgt. Emil Foley in “An Officer and a Gentleman,” which won him an Academy Award. He also starred in the 1970s television miniseries “Roots,” and won an Emmy for his work.But his speech Tuesday focused on the students in the audience.Respect was a term Gossett used often, insisting that people of all ages, colors, races and nationalities can have respect for each other , no matter their religion.”It doesn’t matter who you call God, you can call him Allah, Buddha or not give him a name at all,” said Gossett. “The concept you have to strive for on a daily basis is to respect yourself, respect your elders and respect the opposite sex.”He continued by jokingly threatening the males in the audience that he would “sick Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal) on all your butts” if they didn’t “treat the ladies with respect.”The actor-turned-activist spoke at the auditorium for the event titled, “No Such Thing as Impossible,” a quote that Gossett had students chant together on their feet several times throughout his speech.Students from Lynn public schools, Cohen Hillel Academy, KIPP Academy and Marblehead Middle School attended the event and created posters filled with