VOA常速英语2019--美国女候选人能否打破总统"天花板"

This month marks the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the barrier that divided democratic Western Europe from the Communist East. Speaking in Berlin, Germany, U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator¹ Mark Green urged young democracy activists² to remember that the victory of democracy was not easy nor was it inevitable³. It required struggle and courage.

本月是柏林墙倒塌30周年，柏林墙是把民主的西欧和共产主义的东欧分隔开来的屏障。美国国际开发署署长格林在德国柏林发表讲话，他敦促年轻的民主活动人士记住，民主的胜利是不容易的，也不是注定的。成功需要奋斗和勇气。

In the late 1990s, the prospects⁴ for democracy in Slovakia were dim, to say the least, said Administrator Green. But young activists made the difference:

格林署长表示，上世纪90年代末，斯洛伐克的民主前景至少可以说是暗淡的。

“Then Prime Minister Me?iar was engaged in a campaign to shut down (non-governmental organizations), crush the political opposition⁵, physically⁶ abuse journalists, tie the country closer to Russia, and to divert state resources to his friends and family. . . .And yet in 1998. . .a grass roots coalition⁷ of opposition parties and NGOs powered by young people. . .they unleashed⁸ a wave of popular support that carried that coalition to power and put the country back on the path towards democracy and reform and Western integration⁹.”

“时任首相Me?iar参与关闭(非政府组织)活动，镇压政治反对派，虐待记者，让国家和俄罗斯走得更近，国家资源转移给朋友和家人·然而在1998年…一个由年轻人支持的反对党和非政府组织的草根联盟…他们发动了一波民众支持的浪潮，将联合政府推上了权力的宝座，使该国重新走上了通往民主、改革和西方一体化的道路。”

But democratic reform movements don’t belong solely¹⁰ to the people of Europe, stressed Administrator Green. The desire for liberty and democracy is universal as demonstrated by the people of The Gambia. In 2016, under the leadership of Isatou Touray, who is now Gambia's Vice¹¹ President, the nation rose up against the brutal¹² dictatorship Yahya Jammeh. Dr. Touray helped build a grassroots network across her country calling for liberty and democracy. Jammeh made it clear he would not tolerate dissent¹³, especially not from a woman. Her leadership carried the opposition to victory. When Jammeh refused to step down, Dr. Touray spoke¹⁴ up publicly and demanded that the people's will be respected, which ultimately it was.

但是，格林行政长官强调，民主改革运动并不仅仅属于欧洲人民。正如冈比亚人民所表明的那样，对自由和民主的渴望是普遍的。2016年，在现任冈比亚副总统伊萨图·图雷的领导下，这个国家奋起反抗残暴的独裁统治者叶海亚·贾梅。贾梅明确表示，他不会容忍异议，尤其是来自女性的异议。她领导反对派取得了胜利。当贾梅拒绝下台时，图雷博士公开发言，要求人民的意愿得到尊重，而这最终得到了尊重。

The struggle for democracy will never be easy, but it is worth the price. As American President Teddy Roosevelt once said, "Far and away, the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."

争取民主的斗争永远不容易，但值得付出代价。正如美国总统泰迪·罗斯福曾经说过的那样:“毫无疑问，生活所能提供的最好的奖赏就是为值得做的事情而努力工作的机会。”

1 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

2 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》

3 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

4 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

7 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

8 unleashed   

v.把（感情、力量等）释放出来，发泄( unleash的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The government's proposals unleashed a storm of protest in the press. 政府的提案引发了新闻界的抗议浪潮。
• The full force of his rage was unleashed against me. 他把所有的怒气都发泄在我身上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

10 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

13 dissent   

n./v.不同意，持异议

参考例句：

• It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
• He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。

14 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。