【英语趣味课堂】美国警察-Police in America

Nitiya: OK. Can you actually talk a little bit about police in America? How much does the civilians¹ trust them or what beliefs you have about them?

 

Todd: Ooh, that I guess would depend on where you live. I grew up in a pretty small town. I'm white, Caucasian, and I think that most Causasian people trust the police pretty much 100%. They think that they're there to serve and protect, but unfortunately minority groups, blacks or African Americans and Hispanic people, Asian people sometimes don't trust the police.

 

Nitiya: OK, why do you think they don't trust the police sometimes?

 

Todd: Well, one is because the police probably don't treat them fairly. Often they live, some minority groups, live in poor areas, and in the poor areas there might be higher crime and the police probably have more stress, and they have they're more ... defensive², and as a result maybe they behave poorly, or they don't treat certain minority groups equally. They're more suspicious³, and as a result, sometimes bad things happen.

 

Nitiya: So basically⁴, most of the people do trust, it's like that.

 

Todd: I think, I think most people trust the police. I think, understandably, especially African Americans, don't trust the police because they think the police is always nervous and edgy⁵ around them, and that the police might use violence against them, or suspect that they are criminals, when they are just a good ordinary citizen, and so they probably don't trust the police as much.

 

Nitiya: OK, then and there is one more thing I want to ask you, about this police thing, so African Americans don't become police?

 

Todd: Oh, no, it's quite often that African Americans do become police.

 

Nitiya: OK, so you do have black people, who are police?

 

Todd: Oh, of course and you have, we have minority group. Usually where you have distrust with the police is the major larger cities, and it's a race thing, that has to do with race, but it also is an income thing, where usually the lower income people often feel like they're not treated, you know, fairly I guess. I mean what is it like in India? Do you have complete trust of the police?

 

Nitiya: I guess no, but it depends exactly on the city, as you said. The smaller cities, I think the conditions are very bad. I don't think, and it's not that fast, like in America, you dial a number and there are police there in two minutes, but that's not the way in India. Crime finishes and then they appear. Yeah. It's like that.

 

Todd: OK, well, nice talking to you about that.

1 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

2 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

3 suspicious   

adj.可疑的，容易引起怀疑的，猜疑的，疑心的

参考例句：

• A man was hanging about the house in a suspicious manner.一个男人在房子周围可疑地荡来荡去。
• He's so suspicious he would distrust his own mother.他这个人疑心太重，连自己的母亲也不相信。

4 basically   

adv.基本上，从根本上说

参考例句：

• His heart is basically sound.他的心脏基本上健康。
• Basically I agree with your plan.我基本上同意你的计划。

5 edgy   

adj.不安的；易怒的

参考例句：

• She's been a bit edgy lately,waiting for the exam results.她正在等待考试结果，所以最近有些焦躁不安。
• He was nervous and edgy, still chain-smoking.他紧张不安，还在一根接一根地抽着烟。