In June of 2024 the Combine conducted a Debate program at Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brownsville, Brooklyn. The young residents culminated the ending of an exceptional program with a “Great Debate” event. At the event, our scholars debated in a team format concerning social topics, such as whether or not juveniles should be detained. This event was attended by city officials responsible for the juvenile correctional facilities, attorneys, educators, scholars, formerly incarcerated individuals who have changed their lives around for the better, invested community members, and others.
The debate captured just a glimpse of the hard work that these young people had put into the program. Their work included rigorous scholarship and research. They developed oratory, writing, listening, and communication skills that included group discussions about the social, political, and economic environment that many of them were born into. They listened to great scholars, intellectuals, activists, and civil rights leaders like Stokely Carmichael, Assata Shakur, Fred Hampton, and Malcolm X. For all of the Combine members who participated, it was a deeply emotional experience. None of us ever got comfortable seeing young children 12-18 years of age being imprisoned. Many of the young people wore their generational trauma like an article of clothing, while many kept their traumas hidden. The Great Debate program highlighted how brilliantly aware and intel