美国有线新闻 CNN 2013-07-28

 The father of Trayvon Martin on Capitol Hill with the Congressional Black Caucus¹ showing how the simmering issues of race and the law that came up in the George Zimmerman case are just as politically explosive, perhaps more so, since the jury acquitted² Zimmerman of his murder. 

 

To have his name slandered³ and demonized, I think, as a father, I think it's real important that my message to the world is that we won't let this verdict sum up how, who Trayvon was. 

 

CNN political analyst⁴ Cornell Belcher met with Tracy Martin just before his appearance on the Hill. He says the jury's decision acquitting⁵ George Zimmerman could be a crucial moment in the debate over stand-your-ground laws(不退让法). But on a personal level for the Martin family, it's a time to let the public know who their son was. 

 

They also wanted to find their son. I mean, one of the things I think that's been problematic from the case is that, you know, the defense⁶ defines George Zimmerman in a way that was, that was helpful to his defense, but they, I don't think they feel as though their son has been well defined and sort of who he, who he was. 

 

The back and forth⁷ over the Martin case went to new heights after President Obama himself weighed in with a deeply personal speech. 

 

When Trayvon Martin was first shot, I said that this could have been my son. Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago. 

 

All eyes are on the attorney general, Eric Holder⁸. The Obama constituency(选区的选民) wants to know whether the Justice Department will take any future steps in the case. Holder has been highly critical of stand-your-ground laws.

 

By allowing and perhaps encouraging violent situations to escalate⁹ in public, such laws undermine public safety. The list of resulting tragedies is long, and unfortunately, has victimized too many who are innocent. It is our collective obligation. We must stand our ground. 

 

The Martin family has started a foundation to honor Trayvon's memory and to push for changes. 

 

We're here today to see what we can do to stop this from happening to your child.

1 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

2 acquitted   

宣判…无罪( acquit的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（自己）作出某种表现

参考例句：

• The jury acquitted him of murder. 陪审团裁决他谋杀罪不成立。
• Five months ago she was acquitted on a shoplifting charge. 五个月前她被宣判未犯入店行窃罪。

3 slandered   

造谣中伤( slander的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She slandered him behind his back. 她在背地里对他造谣中伤。
• He was basely slandered by his enemies. 他受到仇敌卑鄙的诋毁。

4 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

5 acquitting   

宣判…无罪( acquit的现在分词 )； 使（自己）作出某种表现

参考例句：

• Meanwhile Ms Sotomayor is acquitting herself well enough. 另一方面，Sotomayor女士正在完成自己的任务。
• It has the following characteristics: high speed of data acquitting and data processing. 固件程序具有较高的采集响应速度和数据处理速度。

6 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

7 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

8 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

9 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。