经济学人316:梦想愈来愈近

 　　"ALL-WHITE neighbourhoods are effectively extinct," according to "The End of the Segregated¹ Century", a recent report by the Manhattan Institute, a New York think-tank. Only 0.5% of America’s 70,000 neighbourhoods are now all-white. In fact, American cities are today more integrated than they have been since 1910. And since 1960 the proportion of black Americans living in “ghetto neighbourhoods” (more than 80% black) has dropped from nearly half to about 20%.

　　纽约智库曼哈顿研究所（Manhattan Institute）在其名为《隔离世纪的终结》的最新报告中写道：“美国几乎已经没有‘纯’白人社区了。”现在，美国70000个社区中，只有0.5%的社区仅有白人居民。与1910年相比，现在的美国城市要更加融合。自1960年至今，美国居住在“黑人社区（即80%以上都是黑人）”的黑人比例从将近50%下降到20%。

　　Until the Great Migration² north, beginning around 1910, most of the black population lived in the rural South. Then they were pushed into ghettos because of restrictive deed covenants³ and blatant⁴ discrimination by landlords. Although the Supreme⁵ Court ruled against race-based zoning in 1917 and New York City outlawed⁶ housing discrimination in 1958, real change did not begin until the 1960s during the civil rights era when segregation⁷ was still near its peak.

　　1910年的向北“大迁移”之前，大多数黑人都居住在南方的农村。但是随着限制住宅契约的出现，以及业主们对黑人的大肆歧视，黑人们只好搬进“黑人社区”。尽管在1917年最高法院判定种族分区违法，1958年纽约市也将住宅歧视视为违法，但是实际情况并没有得到改善；直到二十世纪六十年代民权运动时期，种族隔离几乎达到顶峰之后，情况才真正有所好转。

　　Gentrification has also helped: Washington, DC’s Navy Yard for instance, 95% black in 2000, is now less than a third black. America is also no longer a biracial country. Latinos and Asians are moving into so-called white and black neighbourhoods. The typical black American now lives in a neighbourhood that is 14% Hispanic, about the same figure as for whites.

　　中产阶级化也推波助澜：以华盛顿特区海军码头为例，2000年时那里95%都是黑人，而现在其黑人人数只有不到三分之一。美国也不再是一个只有两个种族的国家，拉丁裔和亚裔的美国人也开始搬进那些曾经的白人和黑人社区。典型美国黑人现在生活的社区中，拉丁裔美国人占到14%，与社区中白人所占比例相当。

　　Depopulation of ghettos, rather than integration⁸ of them, has also contributed to the decline in segregation. Thanks to better access to credit, there has been a movement out of the cities to the suburbs, particularly in sunnier states. “The biggest drop in segregation over the past decade has been in places that had the most subprime lending”, notes Jacob Vidgor, the report’s co-author.

　　与社区融合不同，一些黑人社区的消亡，也成为社会隔离程度降低的因素之一。由于获得贷款变得更加容易，从城市向郊区迁移已经成为一种趋势，而这种趋势在美国阳光地带各州尤其明显。雅各布?威格（Jacob Vidgor）是这份报告的作者之一，他说：“过去十年间，隔离程度降低最为明显的地方正是提供次级贷款最多的地方。”

　　Places like Chicago’s South Side are still almost entirely⁹ black, though overall the Windy City is a much more culturally mixed place than it used to be. Still, John Logan, a Brown University sociologist¹⁰, thinks the Manhattan Institute’s assessment¹¹ is over the top. Segregation is still pervasive¹², he reckons. There are still barriers to people moving away from black neighbourhoods, even for those making good money.

　　虽然一些地方，如芝加哥南区，仍然基本上都是黑人聚居，但是整个“风城”在文化上已经比过去要融合的多。布朗大学的社会学家约翰?洛根（John Logan）认为，曼哈顿政策研究所的这份报告高估了实际情况，社会隔离的现象仍然十分普遍。阻止人们从黑人社区搬出的种种壁垒仍然存在，甚至那些挣了大钱的居民也不能幸免。

　　The Urban Institute, a Washington, DC, think-tank, recently compiled a report card on a range of measures of racial and ethnic¹³ equity¹⁴ in the country’s 100 biggest metropolitan¹⁶ areas. The ten best cities for black-white equity are mostly in the South and in the West, while the ten worst are in the north-east and in the Midwest. Margery Turner, who compiled the report, hastens to say there are still significant gaps to address. Even in metro¹⁵ areas scoring high marks, the average black American is more likely to live in poorer neighbourhoods, go to weaker schools, less likely to find a job and is less likely to own a home than the average white. However, these gaps are two to three times bigger in the worst metro areas.

　　城市研究院是坐落在华盛顿特区的智库，它最近汇总了来自美国面积最大的100个大城市的种族和民族公平的一系列指标，编纂成一份“成绩报告单”。种族最为公平的10所城市大都聚集在西部和南部，而种族公平性最差的10所城市则都在东北部以及中部。这份报告的编纂者马热尔?特纳（Margery Turner）说黑人和白人之间的仍然有很大的差距需要弥补。即使在一些“报告单”中成绩较好的城市里，一般情况下，与白人相比，美国的黑人仍然更容易成为贫困社区的居民，进入较差的学校，更难找到工作，或是拥有自己的房子。在成绩最低的一些城市，这些差距则要扩大两到三倍。

1 segregated   

分开的； 被隔离的

参考例句：

• a culture in which women are segregated from men 妇女受到隔离歧视的文化
• The doctor segregated the child sick with scarlet fever. 大夫把患猩红热的孩子隔离起来。

2 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

3 covenants   

n.（有法律约束的）协议( covenant的名词复数 )；盟约；公约；（向慈善事业、信托基金会等定期捐款的）契约书

参考例句：

• Do I need to review the Deed of mutual Covenants (DMC)? 我是否需要覆核公共契约(DMC)吗？ 来自互联网
• Many listed and unlisted companies need to sell to address covenants. 许多上市公司和非上市公司需要出售手中资产，以满足借贷契约的要求。 来自互联网

4 blatant   

adj.厚颜无耻的；显眼的；炫耀的

参考例句：

• I cannot believe that so blatant a comedy can hoodwink anybody.我无法相信这么显眼的一出喜剧能够欺骗谁。
• His treatment of his secretary was a blatant example of managerial arrogance.他管理的傲慢作风在他对待秘书的态度上表露无遗。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 outlawed   

宣布…为不合法（outlaw的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Most states have outlawed the use of marijuana. 大多数州都宣布使用大麻为非法行为。
• I hope the sale of tobacco will be outlawed someday. 我希望有朝一日烟草制品会禁止销售。

7 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。

8 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

9 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

10 sociologist   

n.研究社会学的人，社会学家

参考例句：

• His mother was a sociologist,researching socialism.他的母亲是个社会学家，研究社会主义。
• Max Weber is a great and outstanding sociologist.马克斯·韦伯是一位伟大的、杰出的社会学家。

11 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

12 pervasive   

adj.普遍的；遍布的，(到处)弥漫的；渗透性的

参考例句：

• It is the most pervasive compound on earth.它是地球上最普遍的化合物。
• The adverse health effects of car exhaust are pervasive and difficult to measure.汽车尾气对人类健康所构成的有害影响是普遍的，并且难以估算。

13 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

14 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

15 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

16 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。