世界節(jié)假日博覽 第146期:勞動(dòng)節(jié)

Labor Day is a national holiday in the United States. It is celebrated on the first Monday in September. It is a time for American workers to celebrate their efforts. It is also when most Americans mark the end of the summer. The holiday started in 1894. The Central Labor Union in New York City campaigned for “a day off for the working citizens”. Working conditions were much harder back then and there were few holidays and times for rest. Many people worked 12 hours a day, seven days a week. The original Labor Day celebrations were street parades and festivals for workers and their families. This became the pattern for Labor Day celebrations. There were also speeches by important men and women.

美國(guó)的勞動(dòng)節(jié)在每年九月的第一個(gè)星期一舉行，是聯(lián)邦的法定節(jié)假日，用以慶祝工人的貢獻(xiàn)。對(duì)許多美國(guó)人來(lái)說(shuō)，勞動(dòng)節(jié)的到來(lái)也意味著夏季的結(jié)束。這一節(jié)日始于1894年。紐約的中心工會(huì)舉辦了“為工人放一天假”的活動(dòng)。當(dāng)時(shí)工人的工作環(huán)境比現(xiàn)在艱苦得多，很少有假期和時(shí)間能休息。許多工人一星期七天連續(xù)工作，每天工作12個(gè)小時(shí)。最初的勞動(dòng)節(jié)慶典是為工人和他們的家庭舉行的街道游行和慶祝活動(dòng)。這成為勞動(dòng)節(jié)的慶祝方式。重要人物也會(huì)進(jìn)行演講。


Today, most Americans view Labor Day as a day of rest and an opportunity to look at street parades. Many families have picnics or barbecues in the daytime and attend fireworks displays in the evening. There are many community events, often involving sports. Families with children often use the holiday to go on a final trip before school starts again in September. Labor Day is an important date in the sporting calendar. It marks the beginning of the NFL and college football seasons. The tradition of speeches continues, although the speeches tend to be by politicians trying to get more votes in the run-up to elections. The big speeches on labor issues happen on May Day, another holiday that celebrates workers.

如今，大部分美國(guó)人把勞動(dòng)節(jié)視為休息日和看街道游行的機(jī)會(huì)。許多家庭都會(huì)在那天進(jìn)行野餐或燒烤，參加晚上的煙火表演。同時(shí)勞動(dòng)節(jié)也有很多社區(qū)活動(dòng)，通常都是運(yùn)動(dòng)項(xiàng)目。許多有孩子的家庭都會(huì)利用這時(shí)間在九月開(kāi)學(xué)前做最后一次旅行。勞動(dòng)節(jié)在體育史上是重要的一天。它標(biāo)志著美國(guó)職業(yè)橄欖球聯(lián)盟和大學(xué)橄欖球賽季的開(kāi)始。盡管很多政治家的演講是為了拉選票，但演講的傳統(tǒng)仍被保留了下來(lái)。關(guān)于勞動(dòng)問(wèn)題的大型演講在五一國(guó)際勞動(dòng)節(jié)舉辦，以此來(lái)為勞動(dòng)者們慶祝。