Our Mission: Access
EDUCATION
debate is an educational space. knowledge of debate events, structures, arguments, skills, and techniques are vital to succeed. education is central to accessing the space, and remains without it, debaters are more likely to leave the field. at the hotline, we seek to help expand this access to those who are struggling to enter the event. we work to provide content, coaching, lectures, and more that can aid those who want to join debate. additionally, education is key for minorities who fight for change. by spreading discourse and knowledge of progressive argumentation, the hotline provides a platform that amplifies voices that were previously silenced.
RESOURCES
debate is an expensive event. tournament fees, judging fees, flights, hotels, meals, and more add up to the thousands. these high costs are inaccessible for many debaters, pushing many out of the space and limiting their potential. furthermore, top tier debaters have coaches or prep groups that helps them grow as competitors. unfortunately, these additional aids completely lock out lower income debaters. at the hotline we seek to remedy these inequalities with coaching, fundraising, and scholarships. by closing this gap, we hope to allow a more diverse array of debaters emerge onto the national circuit and combat structures that hold students back.
EQUALITY
debate is unfair, subjective judging, misogynistic debate-bro culture, exclusionary prep-groups, racism, sexism, homophobia, and more work to exclude minorities and empower an unequal institution of debate. a toxic structure has engulfed our events, uplifting a space that works against equality and consistently pushes out already underrepresented debaters. this issue has been at the forefront of debate for years, yet change has stalled at the institutional and structural levels, allowing destructive debaters to continue to dominate. at the hotline, we seek to approach the problem with a direct and united front. we are working with organizations throughout debate to bring them together against the problematic aspects of the event. with a greater and more united group of debaters, we want to directly challenge institutions with petitions, protests and callouts. by taking a consolidated and powerful approach, we hope to eliminate exclusionary debate.
