What actor was the first black person to win an Academy Award? This is one of the questions students pondered at the W.E.B. DuBois Quiz Bowl Wednesday night in the African American Culture Center.
Student organizations came together to battle one another in the event which was sponsored by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
Peter Simon, accounting senior and organizer of the quiz bowl said the title of the bowl came about because W.E.B. DuBois was an Alpha and an intellectual. He said the bowl is a fun way to educate students.
The questions were trivia about black culture and came from categories such as sports, history, geography and politics.
The teams that participated included groups from the LSU NAACP, Black Student Union, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
Steve Brockington, a communication studies senior, president of Omega Psi Phi fraternity and captain of the Omega team, said Omegas are stereotypically considered to be dumb so it is important for them to be victorious in the bowl.
Brockington said the Omegas were the winners in 2002 and the runner-ups in 2003. He added that since the Alphas host the event and are friendly rivals, winning would make the victory sweeter.
“The trophy means a lot to us,” he said.
Jermain Watson, a University graduate, manager of the AACC and host of the bowl, said the bowl provides students with the opportunity to learn about the contributions, culture and history of blacks in a fun way.
The BSU team’s confidence stemmed from their teammate and captain Ralph Johnson, a political science and international studies sophomore. Johnson said the other teams may be intimidating but the BSU team is confident because he is on the LSU Quiz Bowl team and he received the largest amount of points in the previous W.E.B. DuBois Quiz Bowl.
Shavon Magee, a marketing senior and president of the NAACP said Johnson “talks a lot of trash.” She added that her team was not intimidated and was ready to “bring it on.”
She said healthy competition is fun and brings organizations together.
The BSU team won the competition by answering the most questions correctly.
“It’s good to show that African Americans can compete academically and not just athletically,” said Rachel Brown, a general studies senior and quiz bowl judge.