VOA慢速英语--在独立日,一封写给美国黑人的情书

On Independence Day, A Love Letter to Black America

The Fourth of July is Independence Day in the United States. On this holiday, Americans often remember their country’s founders¹ – the English colonists² who separated from Britain.

But in a new book, writer Kwame Alexander urges readers to remember all the people who built the country.

“Is there one voice in America? No, there are many voices. And the idea is that we have to recognize, acknowledge³, be proud of, pay tribute⁴ to all those voices.”

His book is called “The Undefeated.” It is a love letter to America -- to Black America, Alexander told VOA. Most pages include oil paintings by artist Kadir Nelson.

The pictures show great athletes, activists⁵ and artists: Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan; Martin Luther King, Jr; Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.

The pictures also show people whose names we do not know: a family, a soldier and bodies crowded onto a slave ship.

“But they represent a community, a culture, a people. They represent America and that’s what I was trying to say. That this is America. As Langston Hughes said, ‘I, too, sing America.’”

Horns and chickens

Like Langston Hughes, Kwame Alexander is a poet. On a recent visit to VOA, Alexander talked about growing up in both the city and the country. His words create a picture of two very different places in the United States.

“You walk out your door in Brooklyn, New York, and there’s a hundred other people and you’re on the street. And there’s trash and there’s horns and there’s honking⁷ and there’s music and there’s somebody break-dancing over here and there’s energy. And you’re in Chesapeake, Virginia and there’s a rooster when you walk outside your house.”

He says both experiences helped make him who he is. One thing the two parts of his life had in common were books.

“Books were everywhere in our house. And I think that gave me and my sisters this feeling that anything was possible. That the world was within our reach. We could travel anywhere without having left our home through the pages of a book.”

As an adult, Alexander traveled not only through books, but in real life. He often traveled to Ghana.

“And on one of my visits, I noticed that there were no books in the school and there was certainly no library because there were no books. Again, being someone who is in the business of words and understands the power of literature to transform lives, I said, ‘I want to build a library for these students.’”

So for several years, Alexander raised money and found books for a library. The building was nearly complete. But then Alexander realized something important.

“It occurred to me that I never asked anyone in the village what they wanted.”

The elders in the village told him what they most needed. And in 2018, the project opened as the Barbara Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic. It combined both books and medicine, care for both the mind and the body.

“I think that was probably a big part of my life’s work. It’s one thing to write books. I think it’s important if you’re going to write about something that’s authentic⁸, you sort of gotta live an authentic life.”

His book “The Undefeated” aims to connect readers not only to authentic lives, but to authentic American history. Some parts are difficult and painful. He uses the words “uncertain,” “unspoken,” “untitled.” Some parts are proud and victorious⁹ – after all, the title is “The Undefeated.”

And some parts are simply human.

“This is for you, and you, and you, and you. This is for us. Pretty much says it all right there, doesn’t it?”

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

Words in This Story

acknowledge - v. to say that you accept or do not deny the truth or existence of something

tribute - n. something that you say, give, or do to show respect or affection¹⁰ for someone

athlete - n. a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength

honk⁶ - v. to make a loud sound

rooster - n. an adult male chicken

authentic - adj. real or genuine : not copied or false

1 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

2 colonists   

n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Colonists from Europe populated many parts of the Americas. 欧洲的殖民者移居到了美洲的许多地方。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Some of the early colonists were cruel to the native population. 有些早期移居殖民地的人对当地居民很残忍。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 acknowledge   

vt.承认...的权威，告知，收到，报偿

参考例句：

• With so much evidence against him he had to acknowledge his error.在这么多的证据面前，他不得不承认错误。
• It is ungracious of me not to acknowledge your help.你大力帮助而我尚未表示谢意，十分失礼。

4 tribute   

n.颂词，称赞，(表示敬意的)礼物；贡品

参考例句：

• She accepted their tribute graciously.她慈祥地接受了他们的致意。
• Many conquered nations had to pay tribute to the rulers of ancient Rome.许多被征服的国家必须向古罗马的统治者朝贡。

5 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 honk   

n.雁叫声，汽车喇叭声

参考例句：

• Don't honk the horn indiscriminately.不要乱鸣喇叭！
• While passing another vehicle,you must honk your horn.通过另一部车时必须鸣按喇叭。

7 honking   

v.（使）发出雁叫似的声音，鸣（喇叭），按（喇叭）( honk的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停，喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Flocks of honking geese flew past. 雁群嗷嗷地飞过。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

9 victorious   

adj.胜利的，得胜的

参考例句：

• We are certain to be victorious.我们定会胜利。
• The victorious army returned in triumph.获胜的部队凯旋而归。

10 affection   

n.喜爱；爱慕，感情；倾向，意向

参考例句：

• The handsome young man excited affection in a girl.那位英俊的年轻男子引起了一个女孩的爱慕之情。
• He has a deep affection for his old friend.他对老朋友感情很深。