The assassination of political activist and media
personality, Charlie Kirk, has opened up a new chapter of political violence in
America. Kirk was a commentator and influencer, not an elected official. He was
apparently targeted because of his conservative political views. Some observers
believe this event could trigger an escalating response of tit-for-tat violence
from extremist elements and mentally unstable individuals.
No one should brush off this event or try to rationalize
the outcome based on right-wing or MAGA talking points. I will echo the words
of progressive commentator Ezra Klein in his New York Times opinion column
shortly after the killing: “The foundation of a free society is the ability to
participate in politics without fear or violence…Kirk was practicing politics
in exactly the right way. He was showing up to campuses and talking with anyone
who would talk to him…A taste for disagreement is a virtue in a democracy.”
The question becomes whether something positive can result
from Kirk’s killing that would address the almost insurmountable divide between
political partisans. In my view, a timely positive step would be to have a
nationwide discussion on the importance of scholastic training in policy debate
techniques to improve communication skills in American society.
Modern American education
ignores the long tradition of teaching oratory and rhetoric. It treats the subject
of policy debating as a minor club activity, not important enough for the
classroom. Accordingly, young students’ political views are shaped by
partisan parents and social media. They develop narrow silos of thought and are
not exposed to positions that support the wide range of political philosophy
that defines our democratic republic. Moreover, today’s youth and in many cases
their parents have not developed listening skills or the ability to move beyond
stereotypes when discussing a sensitive topic.
Oratory and rhetoric began in
ancient Greece with the Sophists and was codified by Aristotle. These learning
tools later became a cornerstone of classical education in both the Greek and
Roman worlds. They involve learning how to effectively persuade and
communicate when participating in public and social life.
In English
education the history of oratory and rhetoric spans centuries. Classical educators
believed that this tradition trained future leaders. Works like Hugh Blair's Lectures on
Rhetoric and Belles-Lettres (1783) became standard texts in
universities across Europe and America.
In time, these subjects fell out of favor due to the curriculum split between
English language and English literature. In addition, instruction in the
sciences replaced these classical teaching tools. Modern educators often labeled
these communication skills negatively and unnecessary in teaching a basic
education to students with lower aptitudes.
Early in life, I was exposed
to an example of formal policy debate that has served me well. In my small New Jersy elementary school, our
eighth-grade teacher felt that it was important to have an intermural policy
debating team. One of my fondest memories was making it to the finals against a
close friend. In 1964, he was a Republican Goldwater conservative. I followed
my family’s long-standing tradition as a Democrat and embraced the administration of Lyndon B. Johnson following the
assassination of President Kennedy.
Our debate topic was “American
Use of Foreign Aid.” The Democrats supported it. Conservative Republicans
thought it was a waste of taxpayer dollars.
A week before the debate, our
thoughtful teacher, Mr. Gallagher, gave us the debate instructions. Each of us
would be asked to advocate for the policies we disagreed with. He knew that
being compelled to defend positions opposite our ideological beliefs would
provide a richer learning experience.
To learn the status of
teaching debate and communication skills in today’s environment, I went to the
American Debate League for some answers. This nonprofit organization was
founded in 2014 to provide young people of all backgrounds with basic debating
skills. Their mission, through training and competition, is to improve
self-esteem, academic achievement, and graduation success.
At the beginners level, students are asked to perform the most common
type of public speaking. Each participant studies a subject and presents their
ideas at the end of the semester. The students are taught how to implement persuasive speech that will
convince the audience to consider a proposed point of view, motivate them for a
behavior change or to take action.
This exercise is about knowing and understanding the audience before
developing a speech to persuade them. This means that each participant
must listen to their peers before shaping the content. While hundreds of
students participate annually in League activities, it is only a drop in a very
large bucket.
In December of 2023, Brookings Research issued a report, “How
Competitive Debate Can Improve Public Education.” The report concluded that “policy debate is a rare activity with
the potential to meaningfully improve reading achievement among public
secondary school students, to promote critical thinking skills that are in
short supply, and to do so in a way that promotes equity of educational
outcomes. Further, the skills gained through debate are transferable and help
prepare young people for college, career, and meaningful engagement with the
world.”
The Trump
administration can constructively honor the life and work of Charlie Kirk, who
was an accomplished debater. It should
immediately provide funding for scholastic programs on policy debate in every
age-appropriate school. America can replace domestic threats of “going to war” with
classes to save democracy.
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