rockin'robin
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2007
- Messages
- 24,431
- Reaction score
- 549
There’s few debate teams as prestigious as Harvard. To even go up against the Harvard College Debating Union is an honor in itself. This is why they held a friendly match against a team made up of maximum security inmates at the Eastern New York Correctional Facility.
The inmates beat them.
Prisoners at the maximum security facility are given the opportunity to take classes from the nearby Bard College. As part of the uber-successful program, the inmates have formed their own debate team for friendly competition against various institutions. They’ve already brought down teams from West Point and University Of Vermont — and figured if Harvard wanted a piece of them, they could come and get it.
The topic for the meet was whether or not public schools should be allowed to turn away children of parents in the country illegally. Harvard, being the reigning National Champions, came into the meet ready to mop the floor with the inmates. In the course of the debate, the inmate team brought up an argument that Harvard was caught completely unprepared for.
In the world of debate, this is a body blow straight to the breadbasket.
In the world of debate, this is a body blow straight to the breadbasket.
The neutral judges declared the prison team the winners, absolutely stunning the kids from Harvard. This was not a “squeak-by” victory, nor was it on a technicality. The inmates absolutely housed the Crimson team. Nobody can imagine what the bus ride back to Cambridge, Massachusetts was like.
Harvard, being the good sports they are, posted a congratulatory message on their official Facebook page:
Harvard College Debating Union
Organization · 1,186 Likes · September 20 at 1:57pm ·
..
This weekend, three members of the HCDU had the privilege of competing against members of the Bard Prison Initiative's debate program. There are few teams we are prouder of having lost a debate to than the phenomenally intelligent and articulate team we faced this weekend, and we are incredibly thankful to Bard and the Eastern New York Correctional Facility for the work they do and for organizing this event.
http://www.rantlifestyle.com/2015/1...B&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral
The inmates beat them.
Prisoners at the maximum security facility are given the opportunity to take classes from the nearby Bard College. As part of the uber-successful program, the inmates have formed their own debate team for friendly competition against various institutions. They’ve already brought down teams from West Point and University Of Vermont — and figured if Harvard wanted a piece of them, they could come and get it.
The topic for the meet was whether or not public schools should be allowed to turn away children of parents in the country illegally. Harvard, being the reigning National Champions, came into the meet ready to mop the floor with the inmates. In the course of the debate, the inmate team brought up an argument that Harvard was caught completely unprepared for.
In the world of debate, this is a body blow straight to the breadbasket.
In the world of debate, this is a body blow straight to the breadbasket.
The neutral judges declared the prison team the winners, absolutely stunning the kids from Harvard. This was not a “squeak-by” victory, nor was it on a technicality. The inmates absolutely housed the Crimson team. Nobody can imagine what the bus ride back to Cambridge, Massachusetts was like.
Harvard, being the good sports they are, posted a congratulatory message on their official Facebook page:
Harvard College Debating Union
Organization · 1,186 Likes · September 20 at 1:57pm ·
..
This weekend, three members of the HCDU had the privilege of competing against members of the Bard Prison Initiative's debate program. There are few teams we are prouder of having lost a debate to than the phenomenally intelligent and articulate team we faced this weekend, and we are incredibly thankful to Bard and the Eastern New York Correctional Facility for the work they do and for organizing this event.
http://www.rantlifestyle.com/2015/1...B&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral