Who would not be amazed by those young men and a woman who took pride of their race and stood up despite all the criticisms? Who would not be inspired by the efforts and all the sacrifices they’d been through just to turn out as victors? It was not only a fight for fame but fight to win respect and morale. It was not only to be educated and be admitted to the revered institution but also to be treated fairly in the society. The battle was for a deep and profound purpose of one’s existence, to be included in that society, be recognized for that society, and to live as one with the society – the need to belong.
Some people use high-powered machine guns, missiles, bombs, and other weapons to combat and uphold what they believe in. Some people stay silent and lurk at the corners because there is no way for them to tell what they want the rest should hear. We cannot blame them for being the faces of these different people. Some people write their grievances against a particular group -- that is their way to show how much they condemn an immoral act. And some people use their voices and powerful words as weapons to conquer those in dominion. We speak to empower what we reckon as the truth. We debate on an important matter not for our own sake but for the welfare of those who have the same opinion as ours. We discuss on things because we see that it will give us better decisions. We brainstorm so we get better ideas to enhance what has been customary.
In a classroom setting, how can we encourage debate? I observed that all of us, as a daily routine, have been on an informal debate. When you argue on something that you do not agree, I think that is already a debate. However, when you say debate, it is a sport of the intellectuals. It is a game won by artistic and cunning minds. I have been through so many informal debates since I gained reason but not in one formal and serious debate where all eyes and ears are on you. I could never imagine how my knees would quiver, how fast my heart would palpitate and how cold my hands get. Perhaps, there are a lot of things I need to work out and I see the need to always be present during Forensics class. Being an audience of such, I can feel the excitement and the interest of both the speakers and the listeners. It must be a lot of fun standing in front of the spectators and audiences. The heck, that’s scary! I would expect I could carry out a one-hour long debate after this semester. But what is really extremely enthusiastic, is the feeling that you outwit others because you have sustained what you strongly believed in. I guess that is worth the sweat-dropping, throat-itching, running-out-of-saliva activity, and whatever new words I can formulate to describe the draining debate. I would certainly give two thumbs up for those speakers, must be a lot of air to keep your self breathing.
Debate is a powerful tool to boost one’s character and to give others an impression that the person they are trying to go over the fence is not an ordinary person but empowered with smart thoughts and an influential voice. Take your skills to your advantage. We can hopefully improve it through Forensics. Like those Negroes, we can be great debaters in our own ways!
