Debate, an Essay

Intro

Debate’s toxicity is nothing new, however, it is something that’s severely undercovered. We’ve seen the effects of it on the mental health of debaters, the sexism that runs rampant through the community, and the psychic violence so many marginalized debaters have to go through. But what happens when all of these intersect in an environment that is supposed to be conducive of learning?

The Round

I recently had a practice round with a debater who I have not been on good standings with. We recently had a disagreement over the strategic use of a critical author in a discord server for people getting coached by certain individuals. To resolve our issue, we decided to have a practice round. It took place over the voice chat in said discord server, where not only me, them, and two coaches who were acting as judges were present, but nine other bystanders. This would lead to me being disrespected repeatedly.

I was the affirmative, and the problem begins in the first cross examination. My opponent, a masc debater, begins by asking questions in an aggressive manner. This irritated me and I responded assertively. The first comment comes in the general chat. “why is Sumya yelling at [redacted] in cross”. Meanwhile, I was being yelled at by my opponent.  Only I was critiqued. Femme debaters are often told they’re being much more aggressive than their masc counterparts. There’s a skew out of round that spills into debate- marginalized debaters cannot leave their identities at the door no matter how much we would like to. Our identity follows us into the debate round. It controls how we’re perceived and evaluated, and ultimately how we’re treated.

The next issue comes in the second cross examination. I am repeatedly ridiculed passive aggressively, to the point where someone posts the following message in the chat: “Do you have an issue with Sumya or smth bc this is the meanest I’ve ever seen you be in round”. I’ve mentioned we’re not on good terms with each other, but we had been civil with each other during every interaction with one another leading up to now. As the round progressed, I had become increasingly aware of all the people watching and the comments being made. From calling my speeches “jackshit” to mocking what I had said, I was ridiculed. I slowly began to realize there was no winning this round. The round was designed to humiliate me, to mock me, and to assert my opponent’s superiority. There’s an issue within the debate community where people try to be better than everyone else no matter the cost. This has curated a toxic environment that has been pushing people out of debate for a long time, encouraging debaters to keep up this behavior by giving them a W30 under the guise of “ethos”. Debaters who try to be kind to their opponents are given lower speaks because they don’t emulate the aggressive manner of their counterparts who have created this standard of being hostile.

But the abuse doesn’t end there. The 2NR stands up and misgenders me several times, despite my opponent knowing my preferred pronouns (which I know for a fact because we had an in depth conversation about them). Between all that happened that round, it was my final straw. I stand up in the 2AR, and go for the only route viable to me. Misgendering being an independent reason to drop the debater and that it must come first. By the end of the 2AR I am practically crying in my room from all the things I just endured.

As soon as the RFD is over, I call someone who was able to hear me out and guide me in taking the correct action, as well as reaching out on my behalf. After this I call my teammate, who helped me greatly through the ordeal. They were able to help me understand what I had experienced for the past hour and a half. In the following weeks I received so much support from friends and adults in the community, for which I am eternally grateful.

Change

The point of this article is not to simply complain about or critique the debate space- instead, I would like it to actively create positive change in the community to ensure that this doesn’t happen to someone else. If I had been in a bad mental place prior to this round, it would have affected me so much more than it already did. I was in a relatively good place, but even so I was pulling out my hair in round from the anxiety and stress and was biting my nails off- which I never do. I believe that debate can create real change in the world, which is why, despite all of the violence I have experienced because of debate, I will never leave the activity. Ever.

The first way I believe we can create a more inclusive space is to call out exclusionary and violent people when they engage in this behavior, and alert the correct adults in the situation so they can be reprimanded appropriately. This dissuades abuse and makes them understand that they can’t get away with mistreatment of fellow debaters. This is key to ensuring that others don't have to go through what you did. In a similar vein, if you feel safe, you should confront people directly about their harmful actions. This holds them accountable and in a similar manner deters misbehavior. Additionally, and I think one of the most important steps, is educating “debate bros”. If you think someone acts in the fashion of one, then call them out and explain how their behavior contributes to toxicity in the debate community and often pushes gender minorities out of the activity. Debate bro culture is often the reason that many of my friends have questioned their place in this activity. Their aggressiveness and patronizing behavior contribute to debate's exclusivity and make it an unwelcoming environment. Lastly, just being supportive of others in the community can go a long way. From checking in on others at tournaments, to being supportive when others are going through a hard time. Being there for someone is sometimes the best kind of help someone can get.

Conclusion

Debate is not the safest environment, especially for marginalized people, but it isn’t unresponsive to change. By actively calling out people we can help make debate be more inclusive and safer for minorities. The burden shouldn’t have to fall on marginalized groups, however if we want to create an environment safe for us, we have to make our presence known and respected. Debate isn’t for the few people who fit into cliques. It’s for everyone, and the responsibility of making it safer for everyone falls onto those who are already in the activity and have the ability to create change.

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