Given the number of intelligent, progressive individuals who claim to support making debate more inclusive, the slow progress toward making competitive policy debate a more welcoming and safer activity for women might be judged a collective failure. We ground our discussion in our experiences planning, promoting, and hosting the 2014 George Mason University Celebration of Women Tournament—a debate tournament organized by and for women debaters. Utilizing muted group and co-cultural communication theory, we examine the relationship between the debate community and initiatives to promote greater inclusion within the activity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]