VOA慢速英语2012 AMERICAN MOSAIC - Remembering a Congressman and His Efforts to Help Africa

AMERICAN MOSAIC¹ - Remembering a Congressman² and His Efforts to Help Africa

JUNE SIMMS: Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC in VOA Special English.

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I’m June Simms. On the program today, new music from “the Boss,” Bruce Springsteen…

And we go to Texas for a major livestock³ show and rodeo …

But first, we remember longtime New Jersey⁴ Congressman Donald Payne, who died this week from cancer.

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Donald Payne

JUNE SIMMS: United States Congressman Donald Payne died of cancer this week at the age of seventy-seven. He is well known for his social and political activism, especially concerning Africa.

Donald Payne was the first African-American congressman to represent the state of New Jersey, and a former leader of the Congressional Black Caucus⁵. In addition, he was the first African-American president of the Young Men’s Christian⁶ Association, the Y.M.C.A.

Before becoming involved in politics, Mr. Payne served as a public school teacher in New Jersey. He later used his position on the House of Representatives Education and the Workforce⁷ Committee to increase financing for education and healthcare.

He was a top member and former chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights. In that group, he urged to improve human rights in Africa and increase humanitarian⁸ assistance to the continent. He visited several African nations often, including Sudan.

In two thousand two, he was a major force in writing the Sudan Peace Act. The Act provided efforts for food aid to the nation as well as work on settling the conflict. In two thousand four, he urged members of Congress and the American government to declare the killings⁹ in the Darfur region of Sudan as genocide.

President Obama praised the work of Congressman Payne. Mr. Obama said Donald Payne made great moves toward human rights protection and democracy throughout Africa.

The United States Agency for International Development is honoring Mister Payne. The agency is creating a new financial program designed to persuade young people to work in international development. The fellowship will urge members of minority groups to consider working in development organizations. The U.S.A.I.D. Donald Payne Development Fellowship will provide support for graduate school, professional development and entry into USAID’s Foreign Service.

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Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

JUNE SIMMS: Every year the city of Houston, Texas, reconnects with its rural roots and cowboy past. This week, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is taking place in the city. Mario Ritter takes us there.

MARIO RITTER: The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo starts with a big parade. Horses take the place of cars on the streets of America’s fourth largest city. One woman expressed surprise.

WOMAN VISITOR: “So, we’ve never seen so many cowboys and cows and horses all together with all the trail wagons¹⁰.”

The parade of animals, cowboys and cowgirls has opened the Houston event every year since nineteen thirty-eight. But the city has grown a lot since its first Livestock Show and Rodeo. Today, very few American children grow up in rural areas with horses and cows.

But children still love horses, as noted¹¹ by one young parade watcher.

GIRL: “Cause I’m gonna ride them when I get bigger.”

Every year, groups of people gather in different parts of Texas and ride horses and covered wagons into Houston. They set up camp at Memorial Park in the city. The visitors sometimes come from hundreds of kilometers away.

Houstonian Santo Cruz says the trip by horse helps him reconnect with history.

SANTO CRUZ: “I wanted to have a feeling of how our ancestors had to cross this prairie, at one time or another, you know. There was no cars.”

The event brings horse riders together. Gerald Barkley of Crockett, Texas, and his friend Donald Kimble of Terrell, Texas, meet at the Livestock Show and Rodeo every year with friends they have made on the trail rides.

DONALD KIMBLE: “We all get together and enjoy each other and which some of us haven’t seen each other in a year, so that brings out all the good to me.”

But they also say the rides honor an important Texas tradition.

GERALD BARKLEY: “They promote this way of life so it doesn’t fade away from existence.”

Tens of thousands people attend the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The main event is the rodeo. Cowboys get on powerful horses that try to throw off their riders. Cowboys also ride on bulls or male cows. Cowgirls compete in barrel races. They ride their horses as fast as possible while making very sharp turns around markers placed in the race field.

This year, a new event fills visitors with the spirit of the Wild West of America’s imagination. It is called Cowboy Mounted Shooting. The riders race around, firing guns at balloons. However, no bullets are flying. The guns produce a little fire and smoke. It is burning ash that bursts the balloon.

Cowboy Mounted Shooting requires horsemanship more than strength. This appeals to women riders like Annie Bianco.

ANNIE BIANCO: “It’s definitely an equestrian¹² sport. And so, eighty percent is riding. You have to be a really good rider to do this sport. And then the rest is gun handling.”

In truth, shooting while on horseback was not common in the Old West. But Hollywood westerns have led Americans to connect the two. Competitor Denny Chapman admits the activity seems to capture a moment in time.

DENNY CHAPMAN: “Its loud, it’s smoky. It’s wild. It’s wild west.”

The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo lasts three weeks. It ends on March eighteenth.

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Bruce Springsteen “Wrecking Ball”

JUNE SIMMS: Rocker Bruce Springsteen released his seventeenth studio album this week. “Wrecking Ball” is his first record since two thousand nine. It is a very direct and angry message about the current state of America. But it is also a cry for an end to economic injustice¹³.

Barbara Klein has more on “The Boss” and his latest work.

BARBARA KLEIN: Bruce Springsteen spoke¹⁴ last month about “Wrecking Ball.” He said the album was inspired by the American financial crisis in two thousand eight. In his words, a “basic theft had occurred that struck at the heart of what the entire American idea was about.” He said people were losing their homes and life savings¹⁵, and no one was being held responsible.

Bruce Springsteen’s anger about that led to the album’s first single, “We Take Care of Our Own.”

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Members of the E Street Band play on the album. The group’s saxophone player, Clarence Clemons, died last year. Bruce Springsteen had played with “the big man” since the singer was twenty-two. Springsteen said losing his friend and band mate was like “losing the rain, or the air.” He called their relationship elemental.

Clarence Clemons appears on “Wrecking Ball,” playing sax on “Land of Hope and Dreams.”

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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will not go on without a sax player. In fact, two men will take on Clarence Clemons’ part during the concert series for “Wrecking Ball.” And one of them is a close link: Clemons’ nephew Jake. The first concert, in Atlanta, will be on March eighteenth.

We leave you with Bruce Springsteen and gospel singer Michelle Moore performing “Rocky Ground” from the new album “Wrecking Ball.”

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JUNE SIMMS: I’m June Simms. This program was written by Kim Varzi and Caty Weaver¹⁶, who was also our producer. Additional reporting came from Greg Flakus.

Hundreds of you have sent in your problems and your advice for readers of our relationship blog. Thanks so much for helping¹⁷ others while you improve your written English.

Keep the problems coming, please! Write to [email protected]. Make sure to add the word “relationship” on the subject line.

Join us again next week for music and more on American Mosaic in VOA Special English.

1 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

2 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

3 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

4 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

5 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

7 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。

8 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

9 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

10 wagons   

n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车

参考例句：

• The wagons were hauled by horses. 那些货车是马拉的。
• They drew their wagons into a laager and set up camp. 他们把马车围成一圈扎起营地。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 equestrian   

adj.骑马的；n.马术

参考例句：

• They all showed extraordinary equestrian skills.他们的骑术都很高超。
• I want to book two equestrian tickets.我想订两张马术比赛的票。

13 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

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。

15 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

16 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

17 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。