Latke-Hamantash Debate: Celebrating 65 Years of UChicago Tradition

On Tuesday the UChicago Hillel hosted the 65^th annual Latke-Hamantash debate. Students and staff lined up long before the doors to Mandel Hall opened in anticipation for one of the University’s most famous events.
 
The first Latke-Hamantash debate took place in 1946 and attracted a small gathering to the University’s Hillel building. Since then, the debate has grown to become one of UChicago’s most treasured traditions with imitations at other universities.
 
This year, live online streaming and Twitter were incorporated to make the debate more accessible and interactive. Audience members were encouraged to Tweet their opinions throughout the whole debate. Their feeds were shared in real time on the live streaming site to provide frequent updates as the debate went on.
 
After a humorous speech by UChicago Hillel advisor Dan Libenson, coveted philosophy professor Ted Cohen was introduced as debate moderator. His introductory speech captured the true spirit of academia, stating that  the Latke-Hamantash debate may seem unimportant, “Garbage is garbage, but the history of garbage is scholarship.”
 
Professors Tobias Moskowitz (Booth School of Business), Malynne Sternstein (Slavic Language and Literature), and Richard Rosengarten (Divinity School) were this year’s selected debaters. Using knowledge related to their field of study, the professors were challenged to finally resolve the Latke-Hamantash question.
 
Moskowitz developed the “Klop” Spread, a take on the Crack Spread definition found in finance, to demonstrate that the Matzah Ball was more popular than both foods in question. Sternstein completely eliminated Latkes from the debate and replaced it, in true Slavic fashion, with vodka. Rosengarten was the most theoretical of the three, used arguments by the fictitious scholar Bibfeldt to argue.
 
Based on popular vote after the debate, it was decided that the 65^th Latkes-Hamantash Debate went to the Latkes. However, the debate will continue to be an annual tradition as it captures the University’s academic spirit.