THIS IS AMERICA - Immigration Issues Shape the Experience of

THIS IS AMERICA - Immigration Issues Shape the Experience of U.S. Latinos
By Jerilyn Watson

Broadcast: Monday, June 27, 2005

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VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA, in VOA Special English. I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

A store in Chicago, a city with a large Polish population, has signs in Polish and Spanish, reflecting changes in the area

 
 
And I'm Bob Doughty¹. About one out of seven people in the United States is Hispanic, or of Spanish-speaking ancestry². This week, we present the second part of our report about Hispanic life in America.

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VOICE ONE:

We start in California. This Friday, Antonio Villaraigosa [vee-yah-ry-GOH-sah] will begin his duties as mayor of Los Angeles. Around half the four million people in the city are Latino, mostly of Mexican ancestry. Yet the place that Spanish settlers named "City of the Angels" has not had a Latino mayor since eighteen seventy-two.

Mister Villaraigosa is from Los Angeles. He was born Antonio Villar. When he married his wife, Corina Raigosa, he made his name Villaraigosa.

He grew up poor. His father, a Mexican immigrant, left the family. In high school, young Antonio suffered a growth on his spine³ and lost some of his ability to move. But he recovered after an operation.

The future mayor once had a tattoo⁴ on his arm that read "Born to Raise Hell." He was expelled from one high school and left another.

But he completed his schooling⁵. He went to college, then law school. Mister Villaraigosa became a labor⁶ lawyer and a state legislator. He served as speaker of the California Assembly from nineteen ninety-eight to two thousand.

VOICE TWO:

Antonio Villaraigosa with his wife, Corina, and son, Antonio Jr.

Now, Mister Villaraigosa will lead the second largest city in America. He won with strong support, and says he wants to be mayor of all the people.

 
 
The mayor in Los Angeles has limited powers, though. And many problems await the new mayor. These include troubled schools and racial and ethnic⁷ tensions. L.A. is famous not just for Hollywood, but also for its traffic. And there are the violent gangs of young people, mainly Latino or black.

Mister Villaraigosa has done a lot in his fifty-two years. Now a lot more is about to be expected of the man seen as one of the new stars in the Democratic Party.

VOICE ONE:

The United States has a growing number of Latino public officials. Yet many Latinos believe Hollywood and other media often misrepresent the Hispanic population. They say films and television programs mostly show Latinos as housekeepers⁸, gardeners or gang members.

There has been some improvement, though, as more Latinos enter the public eye through popular culture.

In sports, professional soccer has only a limited following in the United States. But Latin American players are well known in baseball. In fact, Major League Baseball says they represent almost one-fourth of all the players. The largest numbers come from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and the United States territory of Puerto Rico.

Spanish-language media in the United States are expanding. So are marketing⁹ campaigns aimed at Latinos, both in Spanish and English.

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VOICE TWO:

Immigration is a major part of the Latino experience in America.

A research group estimates that more than ten million immigrants were in the United States illegally as of March of two thousand four. The Pew Hispanic Center says most came from Latin America; more than half came from Mexico.

Traditionally, illegal immigrants went to states like California, New York, Texas, Florida, Illinois or New Jersey¹⁰. Now many are going to other parts of the country. By two thousand four, almost four million had gone to states other than the six most traditionally popular.

The researchers say illegal immigrants almost always work, and most live with families. Some family members are citizens, others are not. Children born in the United States become American citizens by birth. The researchers estimate that parents who came here illegally have about three million children with American citizenship¹¹.

VOICE ONE:

For some illegal immigrants, trying to reach the United States can be deadly. Many Cubans and Haitians have drowned attempting to reach Florida. Part of the border area between Mexico and the state of Arizona is also an especially dangerous crossing. Some illegal immigrants die in the heat of the desert; others die in the cold of the mountains.

VOICE TWO:

 
 
Border Patrol officials call the period of hot weather between May and late September "the season of death."

Criminals known as "coyotes" [koh-YOH-tehs] also play a part. Immigrants pay these people to help them enter the United States illegally. In two thousand three, the Border Patrol found the bodies of nineteen people in Victoria, Texas. A "coyote" had left them trapped without water or enough air in the back of a truck.

Some illegal immigrants who are caught by the Border Patrol try again and again.

In April, a civilian¹² group offered to help guard the border area between Arizona and Mexico. The civilians¹³ carried weapons and reported sightings to the Border Patrol. At that time, the group called itself the Minuteman Project. Now it is known as the Minuteman Civil Defense¹⁴ Corps¹⁵.

VOICE ONE:

Some in the public denounced the Minutemen as "migrant hunters." President Bush criticized the group. But members say they were responsible for the arrests of several hundred people. They are planning more operations.

Another group, the New Mexico Minutemen, has also been established. Its members say they do not carry weapons. They say they provide food, water and medical help to people who are caught.

Some churches and other community groups provide humanitarian¹⁶ aid to illegal immigrants but do not report them.

There are calls for immigration reform. President Bush has proposed a guest worker plan. Temporary work permits would let illegal immigrants in the country stay for at least three years without fear of expulsion. After that, they would have to return home unless they had been approved for the process of citizenship.

Critics say such a plan will only increase illegal immigration.

VOICE TWO:

The terrorist attacks of September eleventh, two thousand one, have increased efforts to strengthen border security. They have also led to measures such as a new federal law called the REAL ID Act of Two Thousand Five.

Among other things, the law aims to increase security requirements for states to give someone a permit to drive. That is because Americans commonly use their driver's license¹⁷ for identification. The new law sets requirements for licenses¹⁸ to be accepted for federal purposes, such as to get on a plane. If states choose to give a license to an illegal immigrant, they are supposed to mark it with a special design or color.

Opponents protested the legislation as anti-immigrant.

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VOICE ONE:

It is illegal to hire undocumented workers. But some employers depend on them. They say illegal immigrants are willing to take jobs that Americans do not want.

In Northern Virginia, Latino day laborers¹⁹ wait in the snow for jobs

 
 
Work conditions are often dangerous, and jobs usually do not provide a health plan. In some communities, laborers gather on streets, often near home improvement stores, waiting and hoping to get a day's work.

VOICE TWO:

Many people are sympathetic to the struggles of immigrants in search of a better life. But communities must also find ways to deal with the costs of education, medical care and other services for the poor. English language classes for adults are often full. Cities need more Spanish-speaking teachers, police officers and others.

Immigration has always been an issue of debate in America. Some say people who enter the country illegally have no right to free services and should be punished for breaking the law. Others argue that illegal immigrants are more important to the economy than many people recognize.

VOICE ONE:

Traditionally, blacks were the largest minority group in the United States. Now there are more than forty-one million Latinos, fourteen percent of the population. Their numbers are growing through high birth rates and immigration. Latino leaders hope that as the numbers continue to grow, so will the social and political influence of Hispanic America.

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VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson, with additional reporting by Brianna Blake. Caty Weaver²⁰ produced both parts of our series. I'm Bob Doughty.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Our programs can be found on the Internet at www.tingroom.com. Please join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

1 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

2 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。

3 spine   

n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊

参考例句：

• He broke his spine in a fall from a horse.他从马上跌下摔断了脊梁骨。
• His spine developed a slight curve.他的脊柱有点弯曲。

4 tattoo   

n.纹身，(皮肤上的)刺花纹；vt.刺花纹于

参考例句：

• I've decided to get my tattoo removed.我已经决定去掉我身上的纹身。
• He had a tattoo on the back of his hand.他手背上刺有花纹。

5 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

7 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。

8 housekeepers   

n.（女）管家( housekeeper的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Can you send up one of your housekeepers to make bed? 请你派个女服务员来整理床铺好吗？ 来自互联网
• They work as gas station attendants, firemen, housekeepers,and security personnel. 本句翻译：机器人也能够作为煤气站的服务员，救火队员等保安作用。 来自互联网

9 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

10 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

11 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

12 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

13 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。

14 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。

15 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

16 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

17 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

18 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

19 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

20 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。