WUDL Public Debates
While debate tournaments provide a great environment to test ideas and build your skills, we try to provide our students the opportunity to take their skills out into the community and discuss the issues of the day with decision makers and practitioners in and around Washington.
Here is a selection of the Public Debates we’ve organized:
I-Resolve 2023
Washington Urban Debate partnered with the National Association of Urban Debate Leagues to put on another of the I-RESOLVE debate series. In 2023, the topic focused on economic inequality. WUDL was represented by Akesh Mallia (School Without Walls) and Leah Pierce (BASIS DC), who both brought interesting and unique takes to the conversation. Akesh focused on the administrative burden and barriers to access many government programs supposed to alleviate poverty, while Leah examined how increasing (and adjusting the exact targets) investments in education was the long-term solution. Held in collaboration with the CATO Institute's Sphere Education Initiative, the debate brought in a large crowd both in person and online, and was judged by Ryan Bourne, the R. Evan Scharf Chair fo the Public Understanding of Economics and Abinash Mohanty, a senior statistician for the Federal Government.
Watch the entire debate by clicking on the title, above.
1st "Ambassador's Cup"
Washington Urban Debate partnered with the Embassy from the United Kingdom to the United States for the 1st annual "Ambassador's Cup," a public debate competition focused on Trans-Atlantic issues. Hosted at the UK Embassy across from the Naval Observatory, the event featured students from Banneker, BASIS DC, Capital City, DuVal, Frederick Douglas, Phelps, and School Without Walls. Leah and Daniella of BASIS DC, the youngest team participating, emerged victorious, and were presented with the Ambassador's Cup by Dame Karen Pierce, the Ambassador. The students were then surprised by a visit from Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh. We look forward for this project being an annual event!
I-Resolve 2022
Washington Urban Debate partnered with the National Association of Urban Debate Leagues to put on the first of the I-Resolve Public Debate Series. In 2022, the topic focused on social media regulation, democracy, and mental health public. WUDL was represented by Haven Howard (Phelps High School) and Noemie Durand (BASIS DC), who both brought interesting and unique takes to the conversation. Held at the Brookings Institution, the debate brought in a large crowd, and was judged by Chris Mesarole, Director of the Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Tech Initiative, Joseph Keller, a Visiting Fellow in the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, and Dr. Valerie Wirtschafter, a senior data analyst in the Emerging Tech Initiative.
Participants later went on to New York for another round of debates, including UDL friends from Denver and Silicon Valley, and partnered with Newsweek to record a podcast on the subject.
The Social Dilemma Debate Project
The Social Dilemma Debate Project combats the polarization, hate and gridlock that defines today’s culture and politics with a new generation of strong debaters. Washington and Boston Urban Debate students publicly debated policy solutions to Big Social’s business model. The debate launched a free Classroom Debate Resource that educators use to teach the foundational tenets of argumentation and spur constructive conversation around exploitative technology. Students submitted short videos of their perspectives for possible inclusion in The Social Dilemma’s presentations to legislators and future episodes of Newsweek’s The Debate podcast.
US Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia and the War in Yemen
The Saudi - Houthi war continued far from America's public consciousness, even as we provided the arms with which it was being fought. WUDL students partnered with the Forum On the Arms Trade for a Public Debate to shed light on this important foreign policy question. The event drew a great audience, and judges included leading scholars and the US Dept. of State's Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy.
Drones: Escape Velocity Tech Conference
WUDL students took their talents to Escape Velocity's Tech Conference in 2018. In front of a packed crowd of tech enthusiasts and entrepreneurs, the teams discussed drone technology, inspired by the news of Amazon's HQ2 in the D.C. area, the debate covered issues from military usage to commercial deliveries and international law ramifications of the emerging technology. Using a 3 student format, the event featured students from DuVal (Collins, Njoku, and Ntangu), and Frederick Douglas (Anderson, Calloway, and Kamagate).
The Atlantic's 5th Annual Education Policy Summit
Two of the league's best debaters, Paola Almendarez (DC International PCS) supporting Charter Schools) and Paris Smalley (PGCPS's Flowers High School, supporting Traditional Schools) squared off to debate school choice. The audience included superintendents, researchers, and other practitioners. at The Atlantic's Education Policy Summit. The students debated, then took questions from the policymakers.
DC Statehood Debate
The WUDL partnered with DCPS and DC Vote! to debate whether or not D.C. should be granted Statehood. Students from Banneker High School discussed the latest proposals for statehood that have been proposed in congress, consulted the attorneys involved in the last legal challenge to statehood, and delved into the Federalist Papers to discuss the constitutionality of these proposals. D.C. Shadow Senator Brown served as the honorary judge.