VOA慢速英语2021--对种族主义的关注促使人们重新命名入侵鱼类

Concerns Over Racism¹ Prompt² Effort to Rename Invasive Fish

Four different kinds of carp fish from Asia that now live in lakes and rivers in the United States are called "Asian carp."

But it is not an official, scientific name.

The fish are considered an invasive species³. This means their population cannot be controlled. The carp eat food and take up resources other native fish need to live.

The carp were first brought to the southern United States about 50 years ago. They were placed in some small bodies of water as a way to control unwanted plant life. But now they have spread into large rivers and lakes across the country.

Many states in the central part of the U.S. have programs in place to kill the carp. In fact, at one time, there was a sign at the airport in Minneapolis, Minnesota that read: "Kill Asian Carp."

No one knows exactly who came up with the name Asian carp. But after a number of hate crimes against Asian-Americans in recent years, people are working to change the name others use for the fish.

An Asian-American politician in Minnesota, Foung Hawj, heard about the sign. He started working to change the name to "invasive carp."

Government agencies⁴ in Minnesota that work with fish and wildlife agreed to change the name that they use for the fish.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also decided⁵ to start calling the fish "invasive carp."

Charlie Wooley is director of the Great Lakes office for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He said, "We wanted to move away from any terms that cast Asian culture and people in a negative light."

A North American organization working to control the population of the fish, known as Asian Carp Regional Coordinating⁶ Committee, also agreed that it would change the name it uses in August.

Other wildlife organizations are also trying to change the names they use for some animals and insects.

The Entomological Society of America studies insects. It is no longer calling one moth⁷ species and another ant species "gypsies." Gypsy is the name for an ethnic⁸ group that started in South Asia. Some consider the term gypsy to be insulting⁹.

While the carp are no longer being called "Asian," it is still unknown whether they will be called "invasive carp" in the future.

A number of interest groups are working to rename the fish so that Americans may want to eat it. While people eat carp in many places in the world, it is not popular in the U.S.

Kevin Irons studies fish populations for the state of Illinois. He said C-A-R-P is "a four-letter word in this country." In American English, a four-letter word is an expression that means a bad word.

People in the seafood¹⁰ business are working to come up with a name that sounds good.

In Illinois, the state is making advertisements that call carp "The Perfect Catch" and "delicious."

The new name, however, has not been made public.

Name changes for fish have worked in the past.

Fish now known as orange roughy and Chilean sea bass¹¹ used to be called slimehead and Patagonian toothfish. With the new names, people started eating them often.

Even if the carp get new names at restaurants or food stores, scientists will probably come up with names of their own. Many fish have names that come from Latin¹². Fish scientists say they never called the carp "Asian" or "invasive."

One scientist, Song Qian, thinks the four different fish should get different names. Qian is a professor at the University of Toledo.

He says calling the fish from Asia "bad" or "invasive" makes them sound harmful. However, in their native countries, the fish are considered good to eat and represent good luck in China.

"That's why there's talk of cultural insensitivity," he said.

Foung Hawj, the Minnesota politician, was born in Laos and came to the U.S. after the war in Vietnam.

He said he is glad the "Asian carp" name is going away. The discussion¹³ about the fish, he noted¹⁴, "is a small thing, but it can resonate greatly."

Words in This Story

species – n. a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants

cast – v. to send something forward

negative light– adj. making something known in a bad or unfair way

delicious – adj. very pleasant to taste

insensitive – adj. showing that you do not know or care about the feelings of other people

resonate – v. to have particular meaning or importance for someone : to affect or appeal to someone in a personal or emotional way

1 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

2 prompt   

adj.迅速的，敏捷的，立刻的；vt.激起，促进，推动；提示； vi.提示；n.提示；提示的内容；n.[商]付款期限

参考例句：

• His prompt action prevented the fire from spreading.他的果断行动制止了火势的蔓延。
• Will you prompt for us at the performance?演出时你给我们提示台词好吗？

3 species   

n.物种，种群

参考例句：

• Are we the only thinking species in the whole of creation?我们是万物中惟一有思想的物种吗？
• This species of bird now exists only in Africa.这种鸟现在只存在于非洲。

4 agencies   

n.代理( agency的名词复数 )；服务机构；（政府的）专门机构；代理（或经销）业务（或关系）

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations. 联合国有许多专门机构。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The project is funded by the World Bank and other multilateral agencies. 这项计划由世界银行和其他多国机构资助。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

7 moth   

n.蛾，蛀虫

参考例句：

• A moth was fluttering round the lamp.有一只蛾子扑打着翅膀绕着灯飞。
• The sweater is moth-eaten.毛衣让蛀虫咬坏了。

8 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。

9 insulting   

侮辱的

参考例句：

• She was really insulting to me. 她对我实在粗鲁无礼。
• All of us bristled at the lawyer's speech insulting our forefathers. 听到那个律师在讲演中污蔑我们的祖先，大家都气得怒发冲冠。

10 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

11 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

12 Latin   

adj.拉丁的，拉丁语的，拉丁人的；n.拉丁语

参考例句：

• She learned Latin without a master.她无师自通学会了拉丁语。
• Please use only Latin characters.请仅使用拉丁文字符。

13 discussion   

n.讨论，谈论；论述

参考例句：

• It is certain he will come to the discussion.他肯定会来参加讨论。
• After months of discussion,a peace agreement is gradually taking shape.经过几个月的商讨，和平协议渐渐有了眉目。

14 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。