2007年VOA标准英语-Peace Activists March on Washington to Protest

By Marissa Melton
Washington
27 January 2007

Peace activists² have held another anti-war rally on the National Mall in Washington Saturday, the first such event since Democrats³ assumed control of Congress. Organizers say they hope participants will stay in town over the weekend for training on how to lobby against the war, and visit their Congressmen on Monday, to demand legislation that would pull U.S. troops out of Iraq. VOA's Marissa Melton reports.

Protesters on the National Mall in Washington, 27 Jan 2007

Hollywood activists Jane Fonda and Susan Sarandon, and the Rev⁴. Jesse Jackson, are among the big-name celebrities⁵ present at today's rally, along with an active-duty member of the U.S. Navy and a retired⁶ Army colonel.

The group organizing the event - United for Peace and Justice - says the spark behind today's rally was President Bush's call earlier this month for an additional 21,000 troops to be sent to Iraq. The group says its website received more than five million support messages this month, including 650,000 on Wednesday, when organizers held a press conference announcing today's march.

The skies were clear, but temperatures were chilly⁷ as thousands of people gathered for the event. Many of the marchers said they came because of personal reasons. Juan Torres of Chicago wore a t-shirt memorializing his son, an Army soldier who died in Afghanistan in 2004. Torres, an immigrant from Argentina, has marched in numerous anti-war protests. He says the war has destroyed his life and family. "My life is destroyed. My family is destroyed. The president, they don't care about my family. They don't care about me, they don't care about nobody. Also, the government, when I receive my son's medal, I receive by mail. They don't respect me. Maybe because I'm a Spanish guy, I don't know," he says.

Bob Watada is the father of an Army lieutenant⁸ who is facing court-martial for refusing to deploy⁹ to Iraq. He addressed the crowd early in the afternoon. "My son, Lieutenant Ehren Watada, as a proud patriotic¹⁰ American soldier, has stood up to say "enough is enough." And We have to say enough is enough. Because he refused to lead his men and women into the massacre¹¹ of innocent men and women, to lead his men to their own deaths for corporate¹² greed, the military commanders want to punish him," he says.

Watada said his son is being punished for telling the truth about the war. "Lieutenant Watada spoke¹³ out and said the president has been deceptive¹⁴. And that there are atrocities¹⁵ going on in Iraq. These are the words of truth," he says.

Later, actress and activist¹ Jane Fonda - well-known for her anti-war activities during the Vietnam War - made her first appearance at an anti-war rally in decades. "I haven't spoken at an anti-war rally in 34 years, because I've been afraid that the lies about me would be used to hurt this anti-war movement. But silence is no longer an option," she said.

She thanked the crowds for coming, saying their commitment to ending the war allows people in other parts of the world remain hopeful that America can once again become a country they can love and respect.

Other well-known celebrities also said a few words, including actor Sean Penn and the Reverend Jesse Jackson. The crowd roard, music was played, and after the rally the demonstrators marched in the streets near the Capitol building, waving signs with slogans calling for everything from the end of the war to the impeachment¹⁶ of President Bush.

But not everyone who attended was a seasoned protester. For Amber¹⁷ Cilly of the northeastern state of Massachusetts, this was her first anti-war event. She was moved almost to tears when she explained why. "I have two sons and I lost my uncle in Vietnam. And the fact that we keep doing this over and over again and making the same mistakes is pretty upsetting," she said. "And the guys need to come home."

A handful of people staged a counter-protest, holding signs and yelling at the demonstrators. One carried a sign saying "We gave peace a chance; we got 9/11."

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 rev   

v.发动机旋转，加快速度

参考例句：

• It's his job to rev up the audience before the show starts.他要负责在表演开始前鼓动观众的热情。
• Don't rev the engine so hard.别让发动机转得太快。

5 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

6 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

7 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

8 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

9 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

10 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

11 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

12 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

13 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

14 deceptive   

adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
• The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单，其实不然。

15 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

17 amber   

n.琥珀；琥珀色；adj.琥珀制的

参考例句：

• Would you like an amber necklace for your birthday?你过生日想要一条琥珀项链吗？
• This is a piece of little amber stones.这是一块小小的琥珀化石。