By Laura Onyeneho
In the 2007 historical film The Great Debaters, Denzel Washington played the role of poet and professor Melvin B. Tolson, who taught at the predominantly Black Wiley College in 1935 Texas.
He decides to start a debate team of strong-minded, intelligent young students, and they become the first Black debate team to challenge Harvard’s prestigious debate champions.
The movie inspired a new generation of debaters and sparked broader conversations about perseverance, racial injustice, and the power of education.
“Gentlemen and lady, debate is combat, but your weapons are words,” Washington’s character famously says in the film. “Debate is blood sport, you must destroy your opponent, not only verbally but physically…We are here to debate, to use our minds.”
That moment was history drawn from real HBCU (Historically Black colleges and universities) students who, during segregation, used logic and language to challenge power in a world that silenced them.
Nearly a century later, that spirit lives on through students in today’s tumultuous political climate. The revival of interest in debate competition encourages them to use intellectual discourse as a tool for change and a formidable weapon against misinformation and inflammatory online rhetoric.
Dr. Gloria Batiste-Roberts, director and coach of the world-renowned Texas Southern University Debate Team, keeps that same lesson alive in a debate program that has long offered Black students a stage to build power for the last 50 years.
“Debate gives students a passion to develop resources, define truth, and communicate clearly,” Roberts said. “It’s the greatest form of mentorship.”
The Hechinger Report reports a decline in civics education in schools nationwide, citing fear among teachers and principals of discussing such topics in a divided society. Social media amplifies misinformation, and the costs of competition can lock out students from low-income communities.
For young Black students, these problems compound longstanding barriers, under-resourced schools, fewer coaches from similar backgrounds, and circuits where HBCUs are often the only Black teams.
“We’re fighting misinformation and teaching kids how to verify what they see,” Roberts said. “Everything that you read is not always the truth. Debate teaches them to differentiate truth from reality.”
Edison Sanon, a longtime debate judge and coach who’s been involved in forensics since the 1990s, says the landscape is shifting in promising ways.
“Kids are now getting recruited at the middle school level,” Sanon said. “By the time they reach high school, they’re not just trying to find themselves, they’re ready to go. It’s amazing to watch that growth.”
Sanon sees debate as more than an extracurricular activity. It’s training for life.
“They have to research both sides of an issue, even the one they don’t agree with,” Sanon said. “That makes them well-rounded. It teaches them that not everything is black and white. There’s a gray area. Debate helps them see that.”
From the Classroom to the Podium
Hanson Nwole is a TSU senior who’s been debating since middle school. He has been a participant for four years and is currently the president of TSU’s debate team. He has learned how to be a skillful listener, verify fact-based evidence, craft rebuttals, and adhere to ethical standards.
“Debate makes you understand that there are always two sides to every story. You have to know your evidence, understand your opponent, and build an argument that stands up to pressure.”
Hanson Nwole
“Debate makes you understand that there are always two sides to every story,” he said. “You have to know your evidence, understand your opponent, and build an argument that stands up to pressure.”
Nwole credits debate with expanding his civic imagination. It’s opened doors to meet elected officials, perform in public forums, and see how policy affects communities. He and Roberts both described how many schools in Houston and nationwide either don’t offer debate or treat it as an afterthought.
Where programs exist, they often depend on volunteer coaches or patchwork funding; travel and tournament costs are real obstacles. That’s where partnerships and community organizing come in.
While programs like TSU’s are thriving, many schools in Houston’s Black and brown neighborhoods still lack the funding or faculty to support forensics programs.
“The biggest barrier is perception,” Sanon said. “Kids know what basketball and football are. They see those as their way out. But they don’t see debate that way yet. They think it’s boring or too much work. What they don’t realize is the reward is huge if you put in the effort.”
Sanon sees a similar transformation in the high school ranks. He frequently judges tournaments through the Houston Urban Debate League (HUDL), which serves students across HISD.
“HUDL gives students who may not have known what debate is a place to compete and shine,” he said. “Some of these kids don’t realize their own potential until they stand up, make their case, and realize people are listening.”
Partnerships That Widen the Circle
This year, TSU’s Freeman Center is part of a new push to widen access. The Brewer Foundation’s International Public Policy Forum (IPPF), a global written and oral debate competition founded by the Brewer Foundation in 2001 and administered jointly with NYU, announced a partnership with TSU for its 25th anniversary season.
TSU students will serve as judges and mentors in the IPPF, which invites high school teams worldwide to debate pressing policy questions and culminates in an all-expenses-paid trip to New York for final rounds.
“The IPPF was founded to connect the best young minds with the issues that shape our world,” said William A. Brewer III, chairman of the Brewer Foundation in a statement. “The Texas Southern University Debate Team is a championship program. The team’s involvement with IPPF is a plus for the tournament and its participants.”
It provides mentorship, global exposure, and funding pathways for students who might otherwise never have the opportunity to travel for competitions. It also boosts visibility for HBCU programs that frequently compete as the only Black teams on the circuit.
TSU plans to host an HBCU tournament designed to strengthen inter-HBCU competition and pipeline-building among Black schools that have historically had fewer opportunities to compete.
SIDE BAR:
DEBATE RESOURCES
Houston Urban Debate League (HUDL)
- Serves dozens of HISD middle and high schools.
- Focused on engaging Black and Latino students in competitive debate.
- Offers coaching, tournaments, and college prep support.
Harris County Department of Education – CASE Debates
- A program within HCDE’s “CASE for Kids” division, providing debate opportunities for underserved youth at no cost.
- Partners with schools and training programs to build debate skills in students who might not otherwise have access.