VOA慢速英语2018 美国议员争取在国会佩戴宗教头饰的权利

US Lawmakers Seek to Permit Religious Head Coverings in Congress

For almost 200 years, the House of Representatives – part of the United States Congress – has barred lawmakers from wearing hats. But this year, voters in Minnesota elected Ilhan Omar to represent them in the House.

近200年来，作为美国国会一部分的众议院都禁止议员戴帽子。但是今年，明尼苏达州选民选出了伊尔汗·奥马尔作为他们在众议院的代表。

Omar, who was born in Somalia and is Muslim, wears a scarf that covers her head.

奥马尔是出生在索马里的穆斯林，她戴着遮挡头部的围巾。

In answer, some political leaders are calling for a change to the rules so that lawmakers can wear religious headwear during official meetings. The proposed change would enable Omar to wear a headscarf on the House floor. It would also permit lawmakers to wear other kinds of religious headwear, such as kippahs. But it is unclear whether any current lawmaker would do so.

作为回应，一些政治领导人呼吁修改规定，以便议员们可以在正式会议期间戴上宗教头饰。这种拟议的改变能让奥马尔在众议院议事厅戴上头巾，它还允许议员戴上其它宗教头饰，如犹太小圆帽（kippahs），但是尚不清楚现任议员是否会这样做。

The reason for the ban on hats is mostly related to ideas about respectful behavior. Currently, the rule appears alongside bans on smoking or using small computers, such as iPhones, while lawmakers are meeting publicly.

禁止戴帽子主要是为了表现尊重。目前，这种规则跟议员们在公开会议期间禁止吸烟和使用iPhone之类的小型电脑一起出现。

But Democratic Party lawmakers have suggested a proposal to permit religious headwear. Nancy Pelosi and Jim McGovern were two of the writers of the proposal. They noted¹ to NBC News that this year, voters had elected the most diverse Congress in history. McGovern added the amended² headwear rule would permit lawmakers to do their jobs, regardless of their religious beliefs.

但是民主党议员提出了允许宗教头饰的提案，Nancy Pelosi和Jim McGovern是这项提案的作者。他们在NBC新闻指出，今年选民选出了有史以来最多元化的国会。McGovern补充说，修改后的头饰规定将会让议员们无论宗教信仰如何都能正常履职。

The Washington Post newspaper notes that the headwear proposal also denounces some of the anti-Muslim language heard in several election campaigns. The Post added, “It is also notable coming at a time when several U.S. allies in Europe are adopting countrywide bans on face veils.”

《华盛顿邮报》指出，头饰提案还谴责了在几次竞选活动中听到的一些反穆斯林的声音。该报指出：“这项提案的出台正值美国的一些欧洲盟友开始全面禁止面纱，这值得引起我们的注意。”

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

Words in This Story

scarf - n. a long piece of cloth that is worn on your shoulders, around your neck, or over your head

diverse - adj. made up of people or things that are different from each other

regardless of - adv. without being stopped or affected³ by (something)

adopt - v. to accept or approve

1 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

2 Amended   

adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He asked to see the amended version. 他要求看修订本。
• He amended his speech by making some additions and deletions. 他对讲稿作了些增删修改。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。