Chidi Onwuanibe 'carrying on a torch' by winning WJZ's Black History Oratory Competition 2024
BALTIMORE - The winners of our annual Black History Month Oratory Competition were announced as part of our Black History Oratory Competition special.
McDonogh freshman Chidi Onwuanibe took home the top prize.
He spoke with WJZ about the thought process behind his award-winning essay and his bright future ahead.
Students were given the chance to write an essay about quotes from three historical and prominent Black figures.
Onwuanibe's essay stood out among the rest.
"I am the grandson of a Civil War serviceman, the benefactor of generations that challenged social norms to earn an education and the witness to a judicial system that never even tried to protect my community's civil rights," Onwuanibe said.
Onwuanibe, a 15-year-old first-generation Nigerian American, was chosen out of dozens of students from across the state to win this year's WJZ Black History Oratory Competition.
"I feel that I am carrying on a torch," Onwuanibe said. "Black History Month to me is remembering what the people before you have done."
Onwuanibe continued the legacy of prominent Black figures like Thurgood Marshall, Oprah Winfrey and Fredrick Douglass by selecting a quote of his to frame an award-winning essay.
Onwuanibe was notified of the honor by none other than his mother.
"She comes up to me and says, 'You won,'" Onwuanibe said. "I was nervous at first, it was so shocking."
Onwuanibe's essay was not so shocking to his teachers at McDonogh School
"I could not be more delighted at Chidi's success because he is someone you remember because he's so warm and friendly and a wonderful human being," eighth-grade advisor Susan Scherz said.
Scherz describes Onwuanibe as an intellectual who is always asking questions and thinking outside of the box.
"He's a student who marches to his own drum," Scherz said. "He's one of those personalities who walks into a room and you know it, and people are calling out Chidi."
Onwuanibe is now $3,500 in scholarships closer to his dreams of attending the Naval Academy where he plans to study computer science.
"It makes me feel like I've reached out to people and impacted them with my speech," Onwuanibe said. "I feel a sense of responsibility."
His responsibility was to uplift the community by using the power of knowledge as opportunity arises.
"The wisdom of Frederick Douglass "is that there are many boxes for fighting for opportunity. The knowledge box allows you to fight and take advantage of that opportunity.'"
