www.speechanddebate.org
great objectives within our communities. Competitors can easily overlook this mission. I remember as a novice sophomore, all I could think about was beating the person who defeated me at the previous tournament. I hung on to my team’s motto of “liberating hardware” too hard, downgrading speech and debate to just a way of attaining fame, prestige, and recognition. In thinking this way, I turned myself into a competitive robot lacking the perceptive acknowledgement of my vocation to better my community. Perhaps it was a daunting realization my junior year that demonstrated how important personal engagement and helping one’s community really is. I’m an immigrant from Uganda, a descendant of Sudanese parents. When we moved to Omaha, Nebraska, in 2004, a big Sudanese community welcomed us. The community extended to every facet of our lives, from my parents’ workplace to my church youth group. Even my grade school, All Saints Catholic School, had a big Sudanese population. All of us were or descended from immigrants who came to the United States to find a new home to foster our hopes for a better education, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. However, our economic statuses hindered such freedom. To get by, Sudanese parents had to work night shifts in order to keep a roof over their families’ heads. A painful struggle to balance work and family life forced them to sacrifice more than they have ever had before. Their vision of being worry free in the United States disappeared, allowing for depressive reality to settle. The students felt such a paradoxical reality, as well. Conditions at home didn’t allow them to explore all the wonders about which they became curious. I remember students who wanted to go to a trip to the White House but couldn’t because of their parents’ financial situations. One student with whom I became close outside of school wanted to join a chess program but couldn’t
because he had to go home and take care of his sisters, as his parents would be at work at that time. The lack of freedom and overload of responsibility led to revolting behavior and a backlash among the kids. They lacked the parental guidance at home, so they relied on the guidance of their friends and themselves. Teachers couldn’t help; they didn’t understand the underpinning problem. All they saw was the surface of a deeply rooted problem: students misbehaving. During a discussion of this matter with my father, I realized my role in addressing this issue. If I couldn’t walk with them every step of the way, I could do something that involved guiding the students in the right direction. My
protect one another in the depths of chaos. However, the best part about it was that we didn’t have to tell each other this; we expressed it through our actions. Whether it was the courageous steward who saved my sisters and me from a burning house, or the mother who cleaned the blood off my bruised leg, these little moments of support were ones that were memorable and led to the further development of the community. This is what it’s all about—micro contributions of love to our community that can have great impacts. It all begins with realizing our role as essential components of our communities and the world as a whole. And so I challenge you to go out and foster engagement by building your
"Beyond speech and debate, there lies a greater competition in life, in which we are all winners—a competition for change." father encouraged me to speak to the parents to raise this issue. At the time my speaking ability was known around the Sudanese community. Such recognition made it easier to speak to them. Although it was a small group of about 25 parents, I knew such engagement could probably lead to something greater. In the speech, I shared my observations with the parents: the lack of guidance the students had, and its effects on them. I didn’t tell them to do something beyond their capacities. In a nutshell, I just told them to speak to their children. I fostered engagement with the goal of building a newfound community of hope in the future. As an immigrant of war, one of the things I recall having an everlasting impact on me was the communities we built in the refugee camps in Uganda. There seemed to have been an unequivocal solidarity of kinship among us that was inextricably beautiful. We vowed to
own communities under the context of solidarity, understanding, and love. Your speech and debate career will be memorable in as much as you use it to transcend the luxuries of fame, prestige, and recognition. You should instead use your talent to better your communities. You’re no longer the nervous fourth grader in a classroom; you’re a member of a community longing for your help. Beyond speech and debate, there lies a greater competition in life, in which we are all winners—a competition for change. Mahatma Gandhi challenged us to “be the change we hope to see in the world.” Such power is right in our hands. Grab it, go out, and make a difference. The competition begins now. Ready, set, go! Walter N. Paul is a graduate of Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, NE. He is currently attending Carleton College in Northfield, MN.
Rostrum | FALL 2014 67