Despite the building being shut, Barlow Debate has managed to keep winning — at a distance. This past Sunday, sophomores Ben Fligelman & Graham Litz competed at the first virtual tournament offered by the Debate Association of New England Independent Schools, a regional prepared speech event hosted remotely by Northfield Mount Hermon, in Gill, Mass.
Ben’s original satirical rendering of Augustus helping to orient the UN General Assembly to a post-democratic world won him the third place after-dinner speaking award. The win is made sweeter due to the fact that he was competing against a number of speakers who were slated to compete at the now-cancelled World Individual Debate and Public Speaking Championship, which was to have been held in Shanghai in April.
Both he and Graham had high scores in all events including, interpretive reading, persuasive speech, and impromptu speaking. Barlow has at least two more online debate events scheduled for May.
