VOA慢速英語：2020年美國人口普查將會問及公民身份

2020 U.S. Census Will Ask About Citizenship Status

2020年美國人口普查將會問及公民身份

The U.S. Commerce Department has announced that the 2020 U.S. Census will include a question about citizenship status.

美國商務(wù)部宣布2020年美國人口普查將會包含一個關(guān)于公民身份的問題。

Democrats have criticized the decision, saying it will cause fear in immigrants and prevent them from responding.

民主黨人批評了這一決定，稱這將會導(dǎo)致移民恐懼，并妨礙他們做出反饋。

The U.S. Census takes a population count every 10 years, and not just because the Constitution requires it. The results have several important uses. They decide the number of seats each state gets in the House of Representatives. And they decide how the federal government divides money for local communities.

美國每10年進行一次人口統(tǒng)計，這不僅僅是憲法的要求。統(tǒng)計結(jié)果有幾項重要用途。它決定每個州可以獲得的眾議院席位數(shù)量，以及聯(lián)邦政府如何為當(dāng)?shù)厣鐓^(qū)分配資金。

Census information also helps communities choose places to build things like schools, food markets and hospitals.

人口普查信息還有助于社區(qū)選址建設(shè)學(xué)校、菜市場和醫(yī)院等。

Several state attorneys general urged the Commerce Department last month not to add the question. They said it could lower participation among immigrants and cause population numbers to appear lower than they are.

幾個州的總檢察長上個月督促商務(wù)部不要增加這個問題。他們表示，這可能會降低移民的參與度，并導(dǎo)致人口數(shù)量被低估。

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said the state will take the Trump administration to court over the decision. He said the state is prepared to do what it can to protect California from an incomplete census.

加州總檢察長哈維爾·貝塞拉(Xavier Becerra)表示，該州將會對川普政府的這一決定提起訴訟。他表示，該州準(zhǔn)備盡其所能防止加州人口普查的不完整。

"Including a citizenship question on the 2020 census is not just a bad idea — it is illegal," Becerra said.

貝塞拉表示：“在2020年人口普查中包含公民身份問題不僅僅是個餿主意，它還違法啦。”

The Democratic leader of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, said Tuesday that adding such a question would cause fear and distrust in defenseless communities. She said it would worsen the lack of representation of some communities, and that those communities would be left out financially.

眾議院民主黨領(lǐng)袖南希·佩洛西(Nancy Pelosi)周二表示，增加這樣一個問題會在毫無防備的社區(qū)中造成恐懼和不信任。她說，這會使一些社區(qū)缺乏代表性的情況更加惡化，而且這類社區(qū)在經(jīng)濟上將會被忽略。

Several Republican lawmakers have praised the Commerce Department's decision. Among them is Texas Senator Ted Cruz. In a statement Tuesday, Cruz and the two other lawmakers said that it is important that census information is reliable because it strongly affects U.S. policy. Cruz added that, "a question on citizenship is a reasonable, commonsense addition to the census."

幾位共和黨議員贊揚了商務(wù)部的決定，其中就包括德州參議員特德·克魯茲(Ted Cruz)?？唆斊澕傲硗鈨晌蛔h員周二在一份聲明中表示，普查信息的可靠非常重要，因為它強烈影響到美國的政策?？唆斊澭a充說，“公民身份問題是人口普查的合理補充。”

The Commerce Department said Monday that citizenship information will help the Justice Department enforce the Voting Rights Act. The law protects minority voting rights. It was signed into law in 1965. The department also said that between 1820 and 1950, almost every census asked some type of citizenship question.

商務(wù)部周一表示，公民信息將會有助于美國司法部執(zhí)行《投票權(quán)法案》。該法案保護少數(shù)族裔的投票權(quán)，它是在1965年簽署成為法律。該部門還表示，1820到1950年期間，幾乎每一次人口普查都會問某種公民身份問題。

But many civil rights groups and other groups say the Justice Department is wrong in its claim that the citizenship question is needed to enforce the Voting Rights Act.

但是很多公民權(quán)利等團體表示，司法部聲稱公民身份問題是執(zhí)行《公民權(quán)法案》所需，這種說法是錯誤的。

One-hundred seventy groups wrote a letter to Commerce Department Secretary Wilbur Ross in January, shortly after the Justice Department proposed adding the question. The groups said the Justice Department has "never needed to add this new question to...the census to enforce the Voting Rights Act before, so there is no reason it would need to do so now."

一月份在司法部提出增加這個問題后不久，有一百七十個團體給商務(wù)部部長威爾伯·羅斯(Wilbur Ross)寫了信。這些團體表示，司法部“以前從來沒有將這個新問題增加到人口普查中以執(zhí)行《投票權(quán)法案》的必要，所以現(xiàn)在也沒有理由這樣做。”

Census counts are taken in two ways: by mail and by workers walking around neighborhoods.

普查統(tǒng)計有兩種方式：通過郵件或是社區(qū)工作人員。

The Census Bureau says that the 2010 census got a very high number of answers. About 74 percent of U.S. households mailed in forms. The other households were counted by workers in neighborhoods.

人口普查局表示，2010年人口普查的反饋率非常高。大約74%的美國家庭以郵寄形式參與，其它家庭則由社區(qū)工作人員統(tǒng)計。

I'm Alice Bryant.

愛麗絲·布萊恩特報道。