2007年VOA标准英语-Furniture Manufacturer Employs Multi-Cultural W

By Kane Farabaugh
Syracuse, New York
16 August 2007
 

Stickley Furniture employs a workforce1 that includes many immigrants

The Balkan conflict, the strife² in Sudan, and ongoing³ oppression in Burma are just some of the factors that have forced people to flee their homes and resettle in the northeastern state of New York.  But language and cultural barriers make finding work a difficult prospect⁴ for some.  As VOA's Kane Farabaugh reports, one local furniture plant embraces the refugee community, and now employs a workforce dubbed⁵ a "mini-United Nations."

When Mehudin Krdzic was a young boy in Bosnia, he says Serbian forces moved his family from their farm into the town center of Srebrenica.  He recalls what he saw with horror. "Thousands of people killed.  Bodies all over the road on top of each other.  Massacre⁶.  Bottom line, I saw the massacre."

What Marka Bosso  knew about hardship before it came to his village in southern Sudan, he says he learned from watching movies.  As conflict erupted around them, Bosso and his family fled to Egypt. "The real life is different from the movies."

Lai Nguyn is the son of an American service member and his war-time liaison⁷ with a Vietnamese woman.  Nguyn has never met his father, and endured years of ridicule⁸ and isolation⁹ in Vietnam. "We feel like we're lost.  That's how I feel -- I not belong here."

Employees of Stickley Furniture

Though terrible, their stories of childhood cut short are not unique on the floor of Stickley Furniture near Syracuse, New York.

Out of a workforce of more than 1,000, several hundred employees are immigrants. They all work for Aminy Audi who owns the company with her husband.  Originally from Lebanon, she left just before her country erupted into civil war in the 1970s.  She lost her brother in the fighting. 

"Part of my human experience is to look at the entire world as one small place where, hopefully, all people can coexist and there is an equal opportunity for all."

This part of New York state, between the cities of Utica and Syracuse, is home to tens of thousands of refugees from all over the world. It is a welcome and attractive area for refugees like Krdzic, who looked for a quiet place to live, far away from the conflicts they have fled. "My cousin lived here since 1996, and he sponsored us.  He called us and told us that this is a good place to live, you know the climate is pretty much similar as it is in Bosnia and that's why we chose Syracuse."

Stickley is one of the top employers for refugees seeking work in the area.  It is a business that has managed to survive the economic decline created by the loss of the manufacturing industry in the area.  Stickley credits part of its survival to its workforce.

Aminy Audi. owner

Stickley Furniture’s owner, Aminy Audi explains. "We started working with the refugee resettlement program and as a result, we have a lot of people who represent 36 nationalities here who are thrilled to be given an opportunity, to have a door being opened for them.  Very hardworking people, very committed people, and many of them have been with us for many years."

There are few political or cultural boundaries on the factory floor.  Serbians work side by side with Bosnians, as do Ethiopians and Somalis, Vietnamese and Chinese.

"We have to remember that those people, the refugees, have been through so much in their life.  They've left countries, they've been devastated¹⁰ by war... So if we can create an environment that provides another opportunity for them, they pay their own way.  They basically work hard, and we pay them for their hard work."

Some of the employees feel the opportunity to work here has done more than just make a difference -- it has empowered them.  When Stickley opened a plant in Vietnam several years ago, Nguyn was able to return to his country, this time as an adult, and as an American. "They give me a chance to go to Vietnam, come back to my country.  And I'm very proud.  I go over there and I am so happy.  People respect me."

For Mark Bosso, Syracuse is now home, and Stickley is a job he would like to keep for a lifetime. "It was my first job, and it looks like it's going to be my last job."

1 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

2 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

3 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

4 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

5 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

7 liaison   

n.联系，（未婚男女间的）暖昧关系，私通

参考例句：

• She acts as a liaison between patients and staff.她在病人与医护人员间充当沟通的桥梁。
• She is responsible for liaison with researchers at other universities.她负责与其他大学的研究人员联系。

8 ridicule   

v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄

参考例句：

• You mustn't ridicule unfortunate people.你不该嘲笑不幸的人。
• Silly mistakes and queer clothes often arouse ridicule.荒谬的错误和古怪的服装常会引起人们的讪笑。

9 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

10 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。