African Americans are reacting with pride to Senator Barack Obama's becoming the first person of color to be the presumptive presidential nominee of a major U.S. political party. For some though, the joy is mixed with the fear of bitter disappointment if Obama fails to win the general election against Republican candidate-in-waiting Senator John McCain in November.
非洲裔美国人对巴拉克.奥巴马能够成为美国主要政党第一位有色人种的总统竞选人感到骄傲。但一些人在高兴的同时也担心，如果奥巴马在11月的大选中败给共和党的约翰.麦凯恩，他们就太失望了。
African Americans are savoring Barack Obama's triumph, and for many it is an emotional moment. Some watched on television Tuesday night in awe and disbelief as Obama claimed the nomination after winning the required number of delegates.
非洲裔美国人在庆祝奥巴马的胜利，对很多人来说，这是一个激动人心的时刻。星期二晚间，他们在电视看到奥巴马获得了需要的多数票之后宣布自己为民主党总统候选人的时候，都感到“难以相信”。
"Many people I know probably cried, and there are a few that were short of crying, but they said they will save their tears for November," said Curtis Pree, a real estate agent and political commentator in the Washington, D.C. area.
普雷是首都华盛顿地区的一名房产经纪商兼政治评论员。普雷说：“我知道的许多人都哭了。有几个人没哭，但是他们说，要把眼泪留到十一月。”
Christopher Parker is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Washington in Seattle. Parker teaches a course in African American politics, from the pre-civil war South, through segregation and discrimination against blacks, to the civil rights movement and beyond. He said to him Obama's win was an emotional issue.
克里斯多夫.帕克是西雅图华盛顿大学政治学助教。他教授一门有关非洲裔美国人政治的课程，内容从美国内战以前的南方、种族隔离、对黑人的歧视、到民权运动以及后来的发展。帕克表示，奥巴马的胜利是个感情上的问题。
Parker said it is hard to describe what Obama's candidacy means to African Americans.
他说，很难描述奥巴马的胜利对非洲裔美国人意味着什么！
"Black folks feel such a sense of pride in seeing him and the way that he has represented himself and us," he said. "It is such, it is just such tremendous pride. I mean I can't - it's really difficult for me to even put into words."
“看到奥巴马，看到奥巴马展现他自己和代表我们的方式，黑人都感到由衷的骄傲。这种巨大的自豪感简直难以用语言来表达。”
Parker said his grandparents had grown up under the so called Jim Crow laws, in force from 1876 to 1965 in parts of the United States, that mandated segregation of the races in public schools, public places and public transportation. The civil rights legislation in the 1960s ended legalized racial segregation.
帕克说，在他的祖父母成长的那个年代，美国许多地区实施所谓的吉姆.克劳法，这部1876年至1965年的法律准许在公立学校、公共场所和公交车辆上实施种族隔离。直到1960年代的民权立法才结束了合法的种族隔离。
Obama is set to give his nomination speech to the Democratic National Convention in Denver on August 28, 45 years to the day after civil rights leader Martin Luther King gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington.
奥巴马8月28号将在丹佛举行的民主党全国代表大会上发表接受提名演说。45年前的这一天，马丁.路德.金在华盛顿发表了著名的“我有一个梦想”的演说。
But some African Americans fear that the dream of having the first black American president could turn into a nightmare if Obama loses to McCain in November.
但是帕克说，一些非洲裔美国人害怕，如果奥巴马十一月败给麦凯恩的话，他们有一位非洲裔美国人总统的美梦将变成恶梦。
"If he does not win, and the exit polls indicate that race was important, and that those people who believe race was important, they voted for McCain, I fear that our country will suffer an irreparable setback," Parker explained.
“如果他没有赢，如果投票站的民调显示种族是重要因素，如果那些认为种族是重要因素的人最后投了麦凯恩的票，那么我就担心，我们的国家将遭受无法弥补的损失。”
Ron Walters is a professor of government and politics at the University of Maryland. Asked if he is excited about Obama's chances, Walters was careful.
沃尔特斯是马里兰大学政府和政治学教授。当被问到他是否看好奥巴马的时候，他的回答非常谨慎。
"I am more cautiously optimistic as an analyst because I think on the one hand I see this, and I am pleased and proud about it," he explained. "On the other hand, I know that the challenges he will face, both in the general election, and if he wins, in the administration, are formidable."
沃尔特斯说 ： “做为一个分析人士，我是谨慎的乐观，因为，一方面我看到了现在的情况，我感到高兴和骄傲。但是另一方面，我知道他将面临挑战。不管是在大选中，还是获胜之后在政府中，他所面临的挑战都将是严峻的。”
Curtis Pree points out that Obama has a multi-racial background, as the son of a Kenyan and a white American mother.
普雷谈到奥巴马的多种族家庭背景。奥巴马的父亲是肯尼亚人，母亲是美国白人。
"The thing that makes this victory such a historic one is that Barack Obama is a multi-racial individual, who went to Harvard, white mother and a black father, and he is being judged by the content of his character as opposed to the color of his skin," he noted.
普雷说：“奥巴马的胜利之所以具有历史意义，是因为奥巴马的多种族背景。他就读于哈佛大学。有一位白人母亲和一位黑人父亲。人们是根据他的品性而不是皮肤颜色来评判断他的。”
Many younger Americans agree, saying they do not view Senator Obama in terms of a color at all, but cast their votes on the basis of who is the best candidate.
许多年轻的美国人都认同这种看法，他们说，他们根本就不关心奥巴马参议员的肤色，他们投票时考虑的是谁是最佳候选人。 |