Editors Note: The following is the text of a speech given by Diego Garcia at the Bay Area Urban Debate League’s Gala Dinner on May 14 before he accepted the league’s Visionary Award.
Garcia, a senior at Fremont High School, is a four-year debater. He was the top speaker among league debaters in 2012 and 2013. He also was on the winning team in the league championships this year with partner Nicholas Ross, and in 2011 with his sister Jazmin Garcia.
Hello everyone, my name is Diego Garcia. I am a Fremont High School senior, and I want to share with you my vision for this debate league.
To start off, many will tell you how important the Bay Area Urban Debate League has been to students of color and students who have academic aspirations, and I am here to tell you the BAUDL exceeds many of these expectations.
To me, this organization has not just given me the accessibility to college, tournaments and scholarships; it has been like a second family.
Regardless of how cliché or corny this may sound, I truly mean it. It has meant a lot more than a debate league. It has been a place where I met some of my best friends, my mentors and my love and drive for my favorite activity: policy debate.
I do have a vision for this debate league and it stems from support. We need everyone to keep supporting our youth and our mission, to keep creating the much-needed change in our communities and to strive for equality, because there is no opponent we cannot defeat; there is no program we cannot outperform, and there is no stereotype that can limit us.
I learned that every time our league, our organization, our family defeated another team who was a lot more privileged than us. This is what unites us – to be on an equal playing field.
I want more students to be part of this, to know that there are ways out and ways to succeed.
And this is one of them.
As I think back on my high school years, most of my best memories come from debate. (I know, it’s pretty sad.) Regardless, those are memories that have a lot of value and they made me the person I am today.
My vision has always been about community involvement. I can’t think of a better way to approach this other than debate.
FOR MORE INFORMATION on the Bay Area Urban Debate League, including details on its free summer institute from Aug. 5 to 9, contact Jenna Dookun at jdookun@baudl.org
