美国国家公共电台 NPR Revisiting Ferguson: 2 Years After The Shooting Of Michael Brown

Revisiting Ferguson: 2 Years After The Shooting Of Michael Brown

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Today marks two years since Michael Brown, an unarmed, black 18-year-old, was shot and killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Mo. St. Louis Public Radio's Durrie Bouscaren examines what has happened since then.

DURRIE BOUSCAREN, BYLINE¹: Here on West Florissant Avenue, the QuickTrip gas station that burned during protests in 2014 is now a fresh patch of clear dirt ready for the construction of a new Urban League center. There seems to be considerable optimism here in Ferguson. Strike up a conversation with some of the town's 21,000 residents and it often shifts to how hard it is convincing out-of-towners that Ferguson is full of green lawns and kids swim teams with little sign of the damage two years ago. Twenty-five-year-old Rodney Hubbard says he wants to stay.

RODNEY HUBBARD: I've always loved this city. I don't like what it does. But, like, everybody got family. They love their family. They don't like everything they do. But they still love their family. It's just the same way with your hometown.

BOUSCAREN: When the Justice Department investigated Ferguson's police department, it found ample evidence of racial bias² and excessive ticketing for minor³ traffic infractions. That review showed that fines generated by the municipal court here acted as a revenue generator⁴ for the city, disproportionately targeting black and low-income residents.

Vehicle stop data from last year showed that Ferguson police officers are making about a quarter of the stops they did before the shooting of Michael Brown. But black drivers are still pulled over much more frequently than white drivers. Rodney Hubbard says there do seem to be fewer stops. But leave the city limits, and, he says, St. Louis County's other 50-plus police departments don't seem to be making the same changes.

HUBBARD: It's a lot of police departments that still practice that same - we got to meet the quota⁵. We got to make the money situation.

BOUSCAREN: Under a federal consent decree to reform its police department, revenue from Ferguson's municipal court has plummeted⁶. This year, a clear majority of Ferguson voters approved increases to the city's sales and utility taxes to help shore up the budget. One of them was retired⁷ schoolteacher Ruth Benner.

RUTH BENNER: Our family personally thought that Ferguson was an integrated place and things were going well. Obviously, that was not true. Maybe I'm still kind of, you know, pollyannaish or whatever. But Ferguson might have the best tools for making change.

BOUSCAREN: I met up with Felicia Pulliam, a longtime community organizer, at the Ferguson Municipal Library just as a tutoring group got under way a couple tables over. Pulliam points to voter turnout, attendance at city council meetings and protests as evidence that the past two years have been a game changer.

FELICIA PULLIAM: We the people are the ones that are responsible for shaping our community. And what we've learned is when we don't pay attention - when we leave it to someone else - then we get left out.

BOUSCAREN: Pulliam was appointed by Missouri's governor to the 16-member Ferguson Commission tasked with developing policy proposals in response to the protests. Pulliam says it'll take much longer than two years to address systemic issues like institutional racism⁸.

PULLIAM: We ignored that cry 25 years ago. Here we are, a generation later, facing the same issues. And I hope this time we don't squander⁹ the opportunity.

UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Chanting) Michael Brown.

LESLEY MCSPADDEN: (Chanting) What's it say?

UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Chanting) Michael Brown.

MCSPADDEN: (Chanting) What's it say?

BOUSCAREN: In the days leading up to today's anniversary of Michael Brown's death, his mother, Lesley McSpadden, led a march to the street where he died.

MCSPADDEN: It's going to be rough for me. I don't know if I'll even be able to get out the bed. But I'm here now. And I want you to know that we're not standing¹⁰ still. We are moving forward. And we couldn't do it if we all didn't do it as a force together collectively.

BOUSCAREN: Those who march wrap their arms around each other. Among them are the mothers of Tamir Rice, Eric Garner¹¹ and Sean Bell, other men and boys whose deaths at the hands of police sparked protests and a deeper look at policing in America. For NPR News, I'm Durrie Bouscaren in St. Louis.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

3 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

4 generator   

n.发电机，发生器

参考例句：

• All the while the giant generator poured out its power.巨大的发电机一刻不停地发出电力。
• This is an alternating current generator.这是一台交流发电机。

5 quota   

n.（生产、进出口等的）配额，（移民的）限额

参考例句：

• A restricted import quota was set for meat products.肉类产品设定了进口配额。
• He overfulfilled his production quota for two months running.他一连两个月超额完成生产指标。

6 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

9 squander   

v.浪费，挥霍

参考例句：

• Don't squander your time in reading those dime novels.不要把你的时间浪费在读那些胡编乱造的廉价小说上。
• Every chance is precious，so don't squander any chance away!每次机会都很宝贵，所以不要将任何一个白白放走。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 garner   

v.收藏；取得

参考例句：

• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals.他的提议得到了广泛的支持。
• Squirrels garner nuts for the winter.松鼠为过冬储存松果。