2006年VOA标准英语-Texas Town Votes to Restrict Access for Illegal

By Greg Flakus
Houston
14 November 2006 
  

restrictions1 in Farmer's Branch, Texas" src="/upimg/allimg/070509/0931260.jpg" width="210" border="0" /> Demonstrators protest immigration restrictions in Farmer's Branch, Texas

Angry protests have erupted in the Dallas, Texas, suburb of Farmers Branch after the local city council on Monday voted to make English the municipality's official language and impose fines on landlords who rent to illegal immigrants.

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The measures passed by the Farmers Branch city council are not specifically targeted at any ethnic² group, but Hispanics have been leading most of the protests. Most of the immigrants in this area are from Latin America, with Mexico being the main country of origin. The six city council members who voted for the ordinances³ say they wanted to shield the community from the negative effects of illegal immigration, but Carlos Quintanilla, a local organizer for the League of United Latin American Citizens, known as LULAC, disagrees. "What they have done is build a shield of hate, a shield of division," he said.

The city council action drew crowds of supporters as well as opponents, who engaged in verbal clashes.

Local taxi driver Gerald Colgrave, who supports the council action, says he has nothing against people of any ethnic group as long as they do not violate U.S. immigration laws. "I have no objection to them being here, I just want them to follow the law. You cannot have the American dream if you do not follow the law," he said.

The measure to require landlords to check the immigration status of people seeking to rent an apartment or house and to fine those who fail to comply is similar to one passed by the town of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, earlier this year. A federal judge has blocked enforcement of that law while considering lawsuits⁴ that challenge it.

Similar laws have been proposed in other parts of the United States, but implemented⁵ in only a few. The action by the council in Farmers Branch represents the first instance in which a community in Texas has approved such measures.

Farmers Branch is a town of about 28,000 people, about one third of them Hispanic. The town's mayor, Bob Phelps, says he is troubled by the measures because he thinks the controversy⁶ will create an image of an intolerant community and scare away businesses looking to locate there.

Texas, which has long-standing relations with Mexico and Mexican Americans that go back to the time when it was part of Mexico, has been generally more tolerant of immigrants than some other border states. But the high cost of health care and social services for illegal immigrants is causing many communities to be less welcoming.

This week the state legislature began considering a bill that would impose an eight percent fee on all international money transfers. Mexican immigrants in the United States send back more than $20 billion to families at home every year.

Supporters of the bill, which would also deny many entitlements and jobs to illegal immigrants, say money raised from the fees could be used to offset⁷ the costs local hospitals incur⁸ when treating illegal immigrants in emergency rooms. Another proposal before the legislature would authorize⁹ the state to sue the federal government to recover such costs because controlling the border is a federal responsibility.

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 ordinances   

n.条例，法令( ordinance的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• These points of view, however, had not been generally accepted in building ordinances. 然而，这些观点仍未普遍地为其他的建筑条例而接受。 来自辞典例句
• Great are Your mercies, O Lord; Revive me according to Your ordinances. 诗119:156耶和华阿、你的慈悲本为大．求你照你的典章将我救活。 来自互联网

4 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

5 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

6 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

7 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

8 incur   

vt.招致，蒙受，遭遇

参考例句：

• Any costs that you incur will be reimbursed in full.你的所有花费都将全额付还。
• An enterprise has to incur certain costs and expenses in order to stay in business.一个企业为了维持营业,就不得不承担一定的费用和开支。

9 authorize   

v.授权，委任；批准，认可

参考例句：

• He said that he needed to get his supervisor to authorize my refund.他说必须让主管人员批准我的退款。
• Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.只有总统才能授权使用原子弹。