On Tuesday, Jan. 23, the Beta Iota chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. held the first Demont P. Cox Oratorical Contest in the R. J. Reynolds Building, with the goal of identifying “problems or special topics of interest within society and determining how [they] relates to the African-American Community.”
This year’s topic was “The African-American: Existing in a State of Crisis or Opportunity.”
“I chose both [a state of crisis and opportunity] because I think we’re in a parallel universe where opportunity is all around us,” said junior Alece Oxendine, one of the four participants in the contest. “We’re just too much in a mental state of crisis to realize it.”
Along with Oxendine, junior Sokhna Diouf, sophomore Leslie Hollis, and junior Joshua Blackwell each prepared oratorical pieces to explain their standpoints on the status of their community, using quotes from motivational figures and even examples from personal influences. The time limit for each oratory, which was to be “logical” and “correct in form and content,” was between four and a half minutes and seven and a half minutes. Judges evaluated each contestant on criteria including speech development, voice, delivery and language usage.
Blackwell personalized his speech – “The Destruction of Separation,” which emphasized factors that mortally separate members of the black community – with the experience of having a cousin murdered in Greensboro in November 2006.”The same hate that was once shown to us is now being shown by ourselves,” he said.
Hollis took the angle that, although discrimination exists and does its best to bog down African-Americans, “We are, as we always have been, in a state of opportunity.” She listed her own grandmother among those whose perseverance proved that fact in the face of greatest opposition.
Diouf used her speech as a platform on which to address the importance of educating, mentoring and supporting black youth in the community through the school system and through the lives of those in the community.
The contest is named in honor of Demont Cox, a recently deceased member of Alpha Phi Alpha.
“Bro. Cox gave thoughtlessly of himself to constantly develop the lives of others around him and believed that education was the means to achieving your success,” said Kasseem Smith, oratorical chairman for the contest.
After 10 minutes of deliberation and score-tallying following the presentations, Hollis was awarded the grand prize, and Blackwell was named first runner-up. The grand prize was a stipend of $200, and the first runner-up received a $50 book stipend. Each participant received a congratulatory plaque to recognize his or her contribution to a successful first-ever Demont P. Cox Oratorical Contest.