VOA常速英语2007年-London Opens Permanent Gallery on Slavery

By Mandy Clark
London
16 November 2007
 

The first permanent gallery devoted¹ to London's historic involvement in the transatlantic slave trade is now open. The Museum in Docklands opened the gallery to mark the 200th anniversary of Britain's abolition² of the slave trade. VOA's Mandy Clark has more.

The trade in human misery³ lasted for more than 300 years and in its heyday⁴ it made London the fourth largest slaving port in the world.

The transatlantic slave trade was also known as the triangle trade for its three-part operation. European powers bought Africans as slaves, shipped them to the Americas to work and then profited from the products of their toil⁵.

 

The film, "London, Sugar and Slavery," is part of the museum's exhibition. Filmmaker Stephen Rudder says he wanted to reach people who are not familiar with the extent of the slave trade. "What I was trying to achieve is for people to see that this is a crime against humanity. I want people to relate to that history so it will transcend⁶ people who will say it (the slave trade) has nothing to do with me."

Lynda Agard is a community liaison⁷ officer with the museum. She says the building itself is evidence of the city's connections to slavery. "This building used to hold sugar and also was a port for enslaved people so where better for this history to be housed? But also, it makes it very accessible to the wider community to get a better understand of their history."

Historian Catherine Hall helped design the exhibition. She says the legacy⁸ of slavery remains⁹ in modern society. "The ways of thinking about race, that became so prevalent in the period of the slave trade, do have traces in the present. We can't dismantle¹⁰ it, unless we understand the past."

The gallery aims to show how Europeans tried to justify¹¹ the inhumane trade that gave rise to rich profits, brutality¹² and sowed the seeds of racism¹³ today.

The museum's diversity manager, June Bam-Hutchinson, says Britain is in denial of its involvement in slavery because the slaving ships that once docked outside the building were full of sugar, not slaves.

The slavery gallery is now on permanent display. The curator says he hopes it will touch every Londoner. He says only when the city confronts the truth about its past, can it hope to change its future.

1 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

2 abolition   

n.废除，取消

参考例句：

• They declared for the abolition of slavery.他们声明赞成废除奴隶制度。
• The abolition of the monarchy was part of their price.废除君主制是他们的其中一部分条件。

3 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

4 heyday   

n.全盛时期，青春期

参考例句：

• The 19th century was the heyday of steam railways.19世纪是蒸汽机车鼎盛的时代。
• She was a great singer in her heyday.她在自己的黄金时代是个了不起的歌唱家。

5 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

6 transcend   

vt.超出，超越(理性等)的范围

参考例句：

• We can't transcend the limitations of the ego.我们无法超越自我的局限性。
• Everyone knows that the speed of airplanes transcend that of ships.人人都知道飞机的速度快于轮船的速度。

7 liaison   

n.联系，（未婚男女间的）暖昧关系，私通

参考例句：

• She acts as a liaison between patients and staff.她在病人与医护人员间充当沟通的桥梁。
• She is responsible for liaison with researchers at other universities.她负责与其他大学的研究人员联系。

8 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

10 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

11 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

12 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

13 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。