2007年VOA标准英语-Slavery Links Rights Activist Sharpton, Segrega

By Leta Hong Fincher
Washington, DC
27 February 2007
 
watch Genealogy¹ report

 
Strom Thurmond and Al Sharpton 
A new genealogical study shows that a prominent African-American civil rights activist² is descended³ from a slave owned in the mid-nineteenth century by the family of a onetime segregationist⁵ U.S. senator.  Leta Hong Fincher has more on the discovery, which sheds light on the history of American slavery.

Former U.S. presidential candidate Al Sharpton said Sunday the discovery was the most shocking moment in his life, triggering a surge of emotions.  "Everything from anger and outrage⁶ to reflection and some pride and glory."

The study was conducted by genealogists working with the website Ancestry⁷.com and the newspaper, New York Daily News. The documents show that Sharpton's great-grandfather was a slave owned by a distant cousin of the late South Carolina Senator, Strom Thurmond.

The connection links two significant historical figures on opposing sides of the U.S racial divide: Sharpton is one of America's most prominent civil rights activists⁸ who ran for president in 2004. Sharpton asked at the time, "Are we going back to an America where only white male land owners need to engage in the electoral process?"

The late Strom Thurmond opposed civil rights for many of his 50 years in the U.S. Senate and made his own bid for the presidency⁹ in 1948, promising¹⁰ to preserve racial segregation⁴. "There's not enough troops in the army to force the Southern people to take down segregation," he said then.

Mike Ward¹¹ of Ancestry.com says the genealogical evidence linking the two figures is strong. "Based on the paper trail that we've been able to follow, it seems pretty evident that the connection is there."

The key to the connection was an 1861 slave contract, along with census¹², marriage and birth records documenting Sharpton's roots.  "In this story of the Thurmonds and the Sharptons is the story of the shame and glory of America,” says Sharpton. “The shame is that people were owned as property. The glory is that Strom Thurmond ran for president in 1948 on the segregationist ticket. I ran in 2004 on a ticket for racial justice. And it showed what America can become."

Sharpton says he hopes the news of his roots will help America deal with the lingering pains of slavery and racial conflict.

1 genealogy   

n.家系，宗谱

参考例句：

• He had sat and repeated his family's genealogy to her,twenty minutes of nonstop names.他坐下又给她细数了一遍他家族的家谱，20分钟内说出了一连串的名字。
• He was proficient in all questions of genealogy.他非常精通所有家谱的问题。

2 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。

3 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

4 segregation   

n.隔离，种族隔离

参考例句：

• Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初，许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
• They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。

5 segregationist   

隔离主义者

参考例句：

• Recent federal action undermined the segregationist position. 近期的联邦行动消弱了隔离主义者的地位。

6 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

7 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。

8 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》

9 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

10 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

11 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

12 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。