美国国家公共电台 NPR--Biden's new border enforcement plan is receiving criticism from all sides

Biden's new border enforcement plan is receiving criticism from all sides

Transcript¹

NPR's Dwane Brown speaks with Fernando García of the Border Network for Human Rights about the Biden administration's new U.S.-Mexico border policy.

DWANE BROWN, HOST:

President Biden's new border enforcement plan is receiving criticism from all sides. Republicans view it as too little, too late. Some Democrats² think it doesn't address the humanitarian³ situation on the border. So let's ask an immigrant advocate who is actually there. Fernando Garcia is executive director of the Border Network for Human Rights. He joins us now from El Paso, Texas. Fernando, welcome to the show. What did you make of the president's visit there yesterday?

FERNANDO GARCIA: Hi, good morning. Well, I believe that there's a sense of some disappointment. And I don't believe that the president got to know the extent of the humanitarian crisis here in El Paso. We have a lot of families in the streets right now under freezing condition, many of them refugees asking for asylum⁴. And they are being left in limbo⁵ because of the new policy.

BROWN: Now, your organization works with people on the ground. We heard that the president didn't run into any migrants yesterday on his visit. How will this change in plan affect your organization specifically?

GARCIA: Well, I mean, we are - been on the ground for the last - I mean, for many years. But in the last few weeks, we've been helping⁶ these refugee families that actually don't have anything in downtown El Paso and then be exposed to immigration raids. So we have been able to provide some kind of relief. But, I think, at the end of the day, I think we are very concerned that most of those families will be expelled under the new guidelines and the new policy of the president. And I think that is a horrible idea. I mean, we're having families that are literally⁸ looking for protection. And they don't have a solution right now.

BROWN: And more and more families seem to be coming. How is El Paso dealing⁹ with this crisis?

GARCIA: Well, you know, El Paso is very welcoming city. I mean, everybody's putting some effort together, I mean, NGOs, churches, local governments. But I do believe that this is not sustainable. I mean, this is - this needs a long-term solution. I mean, we had explained it in the past. We need welcoming centers in the long run where, in any crisis, the federal government will be able to actually run these welcoming centers and provide shelter, legal support and other services to these migrants because as much as we can do in El Paso, it's not enough.

BROWN: Yeah, the surges at the border are not new, Fernando. The - of course, the Biden administration says these new policies, though, will help relieve pressure on the overstretched immigration system. They also say it'll make the process of coming to the U.S. safe and humane¹⁰. What do you think about these policies and how they'll play out starting now?

GARCIA: Listen, I've been doing this for 25 years. I don't believe that these new guidelines and these new policies at the border are going to make any difference. I mean, it doesn't resolve the root causes of migration⁷. It doesn't resolve the asylum - broken system. I mean, we cannot think that just one online application is going to resolve the need for people coming, looking for protections. But I think what is very sad is that the president once criticized Title 42, which is a health provision used by the Trump¹¹ administration as an enforcement - anti-immigrant agenda. And now he's expanding it to these other communities. So what we're going to see in the short run is thousands of Haitians, Cubans, Venezuelans, Nicaraguans being expelled massively to Mexico.

BROWN: So, Mr. Garcia, if you had a chance to make a change and could get the administration to go along with it, what would that be?

GARCIA: Three things. The first one would be to provide some kind of way - some kind of parole for those refugees, migrants that are already in the United States, those ones that are in the streets right now under freezing conditions. They need that human approach, a humanitarian solution. Secondly¹², I think the president should have more heavily investment on welcoming centers along the border. And finally, I think there's this idea that we need to accomplish immigration reform. And I think, even though it's going to be complicated due to the congressional composition right now, I think it's urgent to start serious conversations about it.

BROWN: Thank you so much. Fernando Garcia is executive director of the Border Network for Human Rights. He spoke¹³ with us from El Paso. Thank you.

GARCIA: Thank you.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

5 limbo   

n.地狱的边缘；监狱

参考例句：

• His life seemed stuck in limbo and he could not go forward and he could not go back.他的生活好像陷入了不知所措的境地，进退两难。
• I didn't know whether my family was alive or dead.I felt as if I was in limbo.我不知道家人是生是死，感觉自己茫然无措。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

8 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

11 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

12 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

13 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。