VOA慢速英語：爭取設立馬丁·路德·金日的斗爭

MLK Day: The Fight for a Holiday to Celebrate Peace

爭取設立馬丁·路德·金日的斗爭

In 1968, American civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and killed outside his motel room. Four days later, a congressman proposed a federal holiday honoring King. It was to be a holiday celebrating peace.

1968年，美國民權活動家馬丁·路德·金(Martin Luther King, Jr.)在汽車旅館房間外被槍殺。四天之后，一位國會議員提出設立一個紀念他的聯(lián)邦節(jié)日，那將是一個慶祝和平的節(jié)日。

Who could object to such a proposal?

誰會反對這樣的建議呢?

Many people, it turned out. The struggle to approve Martin Luther King Day took more than 15 years. And it ended with a very unlikely lawmaker: Ronald Reagan, one of America's most conservative presidents.

結果有很多人反對。爭取馬丁·路德·金日獲得通過的斗爭耗費了15年多，最后一位想象不到的立法者結束了這一紛爭，他就是美國最保守總統(tǒng)之一的羅納德·里根(Ronald Reagan)。

Objections to the King holiday

反對馬丁·路德·金日

In King's famous 1963 speech in Washington, D.C., he described his dream for racial unity in the United States. In one line, King said he hoped "little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers."

1963年，馬丁·路德·金在華盛頓特區(qū)發(fā)表了那篇著名的演講，他在演講中談到了自己追求美國種族團結的夢想。馬丁·路德·金在其中說到，他希望“黑人兒童將能夠和白人兒童像兄弟姐妹般的手拉著手。”

The speech helped create King's public image as a seeker of justice and equality. He based the movement on non-violent resistance, leading large peaceful protests.

這篇演講幫助塑造了馬丁·路德·金追尋正義與和平的公共形象。他以非暴力抵抗作為運動基礎引發(fā)大規(guī)模和平抗議。

Among other things, King's activism helped end laws that separated black and white Americans.

除此之外，馬丁·路德·金的行動幫助結束了美國黑人和白人隔離的法律。

But people who objected to King's message – or to King himself –called him a troublemaker, communist and racist. For years after his death, most lawmakers would not consider a proposed bill to make King's birthday a federal holiday.

但是反對馬丁·路德·金觀點或他本身的人們稱他是個麻煩制造者、共產(chǎn)主義者和種族主義者。在他去世后多年，大多數(shù)國會議員都不考慮確定馬丁·路德·金的生日為聯(lián)邦節(jié)日的提案。

Finally, in 1979, after ten years of petitions from millions of citizens, lawmakers discussed the idea of a King holiday in an official hearing.

最后是在1979年，經(jīng)過數(shù)百萬公民十年的請愿之后，議員們在一場官方聽證會上討論了馬丁·路德·金日的想法。

Author David Chappell writes about some of the objections in his book "Waking from the Dream."

作家大衛(wèi)·查貝爾(David Chappell)在他的《Waking from the Dream 》一書中寫出了一些反對意見。

Chappell reports that one opponent said King used peaceful protests to make others so angry they had to react violently.

查貝爾報道說，有位反對者表示，馬丁·路德·金利用和平示威使其他人如此憤怒，從而不得不做出激烈回應。

Another claimed communist groups were often asked to raise money for King.

還有人聲稱共產(chǎn)主義組織經(jīng)常被要求為馬丁·路德·金籌款。

A third asserted that King wanted government programs to support blacks over whites.

第三個人宣稱馬丁·路德·金想要政府項目支持黑人凌駕于白人之上。

And many opponents questioned whether King deserved the same respect as George Washington, the nation's first president who is honored with a federal holiday.

很多反對者質(zhì)疑馬丁·路德·金是否應該得到同喬治·華盛頓(George Washington)同等的尊重，這位美國首任總統(tǒng)被賦予聯(lián)邦節(jié)假日的榮耀。

The bill did not pass.

這項議案未能通過。

But wait, how about...?

但是等等，換一下怎么樣?

Some lawmakers proposed alternative ideas. How about a statue of King in the Capitol building? While the Capitol included more than 600 works of art at the end of the 1970s, only two featured black Americans.

一些議員提出了替代性想法。在國會大廈設立一座馬丁·路德·金的雕像怎么樣?雖然上世紀70年代末國會大廈包含了600多件藝術作品，但是只有2件是以美國黑人為特色。

Others suggested a day somewhat less than a federal holiday. Why not a "commemoration" of King's birthday on the third Sunday of January? A more informal Sunday commemoration cost less than giving federal workers a paid weekday off, they said.

還有人建議馬丁·路德·金日的規(guī)格略低于聯(lián)邦節(jié)日。為什么不在1月的第三個星期天紀念馬丁·路德·金的誕辰呢?他們說，一個更為不正式的星期天紀念日比一個聯(lián)邦工作日的代價要低。

King holiday supporters agreed to a statue of King in the Capitol. But they insisted that the civil rights leader also deserved the full respect of a national holiday.

馬丁·路德·金的支持者同意在國會大廈設立馬丁·路德·金的塑像。但是他們堅持認為這位民權領導人配得上獲得一個國定假日的充分尊重。

One supporter, musician Steven Wonder, even released a hit song celebrating King's work and criticizing those who opposed a holiday. The song was called "Happy Birthday."

作為支持者之一的音樂家史蒂夫·旺德(Steven Wonder)甚至發(fā)布了一首熱門歌曲歌頌馬丁·路德·金的成就，并批評那些反對設立假日的人士。這首歌的歌名就是《Happy Birthday》。

Two years later, Wonder – along with King's widow, Coretta Scott King – presented Congress with the signatures of more than 6 million people supporting the King Holiday.

兩年后，旺德和馬丁·路德·金的遺孀科瑞塔·斯科特·金(Coretta Scott King)一同向國會提交了600萬人支持設立馬丁·路德·金日的簽名。

Another vote

另一次投票

In 1983, the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate officially discussed the King holiday again. The timing was surprising because conservative Republican Party candidate Ronald Reagan had recently been elected president. His party also controlled the Senate. Reagan had said publicly he did not support the King holiday proposal.

1983年，美國參眾兩院再次正式討論了馬丁·路德·金日。這一時機令人驚訝，因為保守共和黨人里根新當選了總統(tǒng)。他的黨派還控制了參議院。里根曾公開表示他不支持馬丁·路德·金日的提案。

In addition, the U.S. economy was struggling. Lawmakers were reluctant to agree to the cost of another holiday.

此外，美國經(jīng)濟當時正陷入掙扎。議員們不贊成付出另一個假日的代價。

But American culture had also changed. Author David Chappell says that in the early 1980s, the arguments against King were not as effective as they once were. Many voters no longer responded positively to opponents' charges that King incited violence, was linked to communists, or supported racial division.

但是美國文化也發(fā)生了變化。作家查貝爾表示，在上世紀80年代，反對馬丁·路德·金的論點不再像以前那般有效。很多選民不再積極回應反對者稱馬丁·路德·金支持煽動暴力、種族分裂的指控。

Even some conservative lawmakers – especially those with large African-American populations in their districts – had slowly changed their position on the issue.

甚至一些保守議員，尤其是那些選區(qū)內(nèi)有大量非裔美國人的議員也慢慢地改變了他們在這個問題上的立場。

By the end of that year, the bill establishing the King holiday passed both the House and the Senate. It went to the president to sign.

到了那年年底，設立馬丁·路德·金日的提案在參眾兩院都獲得了通過，并遞交給總統(tǒng)簽署。

Reagan and King

里根和馬丁·路德·金

Earlier in his career, Reagan had praised King. In the 1960s, the future president had called King "a great leader and teacher." Reagan had said King symbolized "courage, sacrifice, and the tireless pursuit of justice."

里根在政治生涯的早期曾經(jīng)稱贊過馬丁·路德·金。在上世紀60年代，這位未來的總統(tǒng)曾經(jīng)稱馬丁·路德·金是“一位偉大的領袖和導師”。里根曾說，馬丁·路德·金象征著“勇氣、犧牲和不懈地追求正義”。

Two years into his presidency, Reagan's respect for King seemed to have returned. In January of 1983, Reagan noted that he and King did not share political philosophies. But, Reagan said, the two men shared "a deep belief in freedom and justice under God."

執(zhí)政兩年后，里根對馬丁·路德·金的尊重似乎又回來了。1983年1月，里根指出他和馬丁·路德·金有著不同的政治哲學。但是里根表示，他們兩人都“對自由和正義有著深刻信念”。

Several months later, Reagan communicated his support for a day honoring King—although, he did not say exactly why he changed his mind.

幾個月之后，里根向他的支持者傳達了設立一個假日來紀念馬丁·路德·金，雖然他沒有確切說明為何改變主意。

On November 2, 1983, Ronald Reagan signed the legislation establishing the third Monday of every January as the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday.

1983年11月2日，里根簽署法案確定每年1月的第三個星期一為馬丁·路德·金日。

Even though the holiday rarely falls on King's actual birthday—January 15—it permits public school students and federal workers a three-day weekend to relax, spend time with loved ones, or perform community service.

即使這一節(jié)日很少落在馬丁·路德·金實際的誕辰1月15日，它能讓公立學校學生及聯(lián)邦工人得到三天的周末放松，用這個時間跟親人一起，或是進行社區(qū)服務。

One final note...

結語

As the bill described, the federal government began celebrating the holiday in 1986. Most states extended the holiday to other workers and students.

正如該法案所述，1986年聯(lián)邦政府開始慶祝這一節(jié)日。大多數(shù)州向工人和學生們提供了這一假期。

But several states declined to dedicate the day only to King. New Hampshire combined it with Civil Rights Day. Utah and Idaho combined it with Human Rights Day.

但是一些州拒絕將這一節(jié)日單單獻給馬丁·路德·金。新罕布什爾州將其與民權日相結合。猶他州和愛達荷州將其與人權日相結合。

Arizona chose not to recognize the day at all, until tourists boycotted the state and the National Football League refused to play the Super Bowl there.

亞利桑那州選擇完全不承認這一節(jié)日，直到游客抵制該州，并且國家橄欖球聯(lián)盟拒絕在該州舉辦“超級碗”比賽。

And some Southern states honored American Civil War generals alongside King. The birthday of Robert E. Lee, a Confederate general who fought for states' rights to maintain African-American slavery, is January 19. Lee's cause lost in the Civil War, but some states remember him with a holiday.

一些南方州將美國內(nèi)戰(zhàn)將軍同馬丁·路德·金一起紀念。為各州爭取維持奴隸制的聯(lián)邦軍將領羅伯特·李(Robert E. Lee)的誕辰是1月19日。李的目標在內(nèi)戰(zhàn)中失敗了，但是有些州以節(jié)日來紀念他。

One of them, Virginia, celebrated General Lee, fellow Confederate general Stonewall Jackson, and Martin Luther King, Jr. all on the same occasion: Lee-Jackson-King Day.

其中一個州就是弗吉尼亞州，該州在同一場合紀念李將軍、和他同事的聯(lián)邦軍將領石墻杰克遜(Stonewall Jackson)，還有馬丁·路德·金。這也就是李-杰克遜-金日。

In 2000, the Virginia governor succeeded in separating the events. The Confederate generals are remembered on a Friday. King is honored three days later.

在2000年，弗吉尼亞州州長成功分離了這一事件。聯(lián)邦軍將領在周五紀念，馬丁·路德·金在三天后紀念。

I'm Marsha James.

我是馬莎·詹姆斯。

And I'm Rick Hindman.

我是里克·辛德曼。