2006年VOA标准英语-New York Remembers Its Past Ties to Slavery

By Amanda Cassandra
New York
30 November 2006

New York is widely regarded as a culturally diverse city that is bastion of tolerance¹. But some may be surprised to find out how different the city was in its early years. A new exhibit re-examines New York's role in slavery. From VOA's New York Bureau, correspondent Barbara Schoetzau has the story by Amanda Cassandra.

New York City in the first half of the 19th century

In 1990, the discovery of an African burial ground in lower Manhattan prompted new research into slavery in New York City.

"New York Divided: Slavery and the Civil War" is the final installment² of a year long series on slavery at the New York Historical Society, chronicling the years 1815 through the end of the Civil War in 1865.

The exhibit's chief historian, James Horton, says the importance of slaves to the economies of the northern and southern states is often understated.

"One of the things that you'll see in this exhibit is slavery was central to American life," said James Horton. "It had a central place of importance in American economics. Slavery, by the time of the Antebellum period, decades before the Civil War, slave labor³ produced American cotton. And American cotton was the cornerstone of much of America's economy. The value of cotton exported by this nation was greater than everything else exported by this nation combined."

Bundles of raw cotton dangling⁴ from the ceiling help visitors visualize⁵ the lure⁶ of this commodity.

Southern cotton grown by slaves eventually made up more than 60 percent of all U.S. exports to Europe. The majority of shipments passed through New York ports with New York merchants earning 38 cents of every dollar earned on cotton.

Horton says the array of original documents and objects featured in the exhibit shows New York had a dual⁷ identity as both the center of the anti-slavery movement and as a major financial backer of slavery because of its commercial ties to the southern slave-holding states.

"This is a story about New York, but because New York is so important in the nation itself, It is a story about the nation and the nation's development," he said. "It is a story that starts with the great American contradiction. Think about this contradiction, 'We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights.' What are they? Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and as we say those words, we tolerate the institution of slavery. That's the great American contradiction and you can see that contradiction at work in this great American city."

The exhibition tells visitors that in almost every U.S. presidential election from 1832 to 1868, New Yorkers overwhelming voted for Democratic candidates, who were pro-slavery.

Historical Society president Louise Mirrer says the exhibit shatters the liberal image of New York.

"There were two main trends in New York early and mid-19th century," said Louise Mirrer. "One of them certainly is what we would recognize as today as New York's liberalism and that is the growth and development of the abolitionist movement. It was located on Nassau Street in lower Manhattan. It really took hold and really was quite central to the nation's abolitionist movement. So that looks familiar. What does not look familiar and what really calls into question the liberal tradition of New York and how New Yorkers tend to see themselves, is the fact that New York never voted for [Abraham] Lincoln. Many New Yorkers felt very conflicted on the question of abolishing slavery."

Cotton was such a major boon⁸ to New York's economy that in 1861 mayor Fernando Wood proposed that the city declare independence from both the north and the south, in order to preserve its role as a major port for both regions.

Christopher Moore from the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is a historian and collaborator⁹ on the exhibit. He says the conflicting attitudes of the past explored in the exhibit affect race relations in the United States today.

"We have attitudes about one another, blacks and whites," noted¹⁰ Christopher Moore. "Those attitudes are forming at this time, in the 19th century. This did not begin to happen recently. This exhibition points out Jim Crow, which affected¹¹ African-Americans throughout the United States with legalized segregation¹² in education and housing opportunities, it starts during the slave era."

The tension between commerce and conscience in New York is revealed through historic documents, interactive¹³ displays and reenactments addressing both sides in the debate over slavery.

Visitors can also learn about some remarkable¹⁴ black New Yorkers of the 19th century like James McCune Smith, who was the first black doctor and political candidate in New York State. Another notable New Yorker, Elizabeth Jennings, is described in the exhibit as the "Rosa Parks of the 19th century." After she refused to leave a railway car reserved for whites only, she sued the railway company and won.

Though almost a century and a half has passed since the American civil war, the issue of slavery remains¹⁵ an important topic in the United States, and goal of the New York exhibit is to shed more light on one of the most tragic¹⁶ periods of American history.

1 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

2 installment   

n.(instalment)分期付款；(连载的)一期

参考例句：

• I shall soon pay the last installment of my debt.不久我将偿付我的最后一期债款。
• He likes to buy things on the installment plan.他喜欢用分期付款法购买货物。

3 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。

4 dangling   

悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口

参考例句：

• The tooth hung dangling by the bedpost, now. 结果，那颗牙就晃来晃去吊在床柱上了。
• The children sat on the high wall,their legs dangling. 孩子们坐在一堵高墙上，摇晃着他们的双腿。

5 visualize   

vt.使看得见，使具体化，想象，设想

参考例句：

• I remember meeting the man before but I can't visualize him.我记得以前见过那个人，但他的样子我想不起来了。
• She couldn't visualize flying through space.她无法想像在太空中飞行的景象。

6 lure   

n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• Life in big cities is a lure for many country boys.大城市的生活吸引着许多乡下小伙子。
• He couldn't resist the lure of money.他不能抵制金钱的诱惑。

7 dual   

adj.双的；二重的，二元的

参考例句：

• The people's Republic of China does not recognize dual nationality for any Chinese national.中华人民共和国不承认中国公民具有双重国籍。
• He has dual role as composer and conductor.他兼作曲家及指挥的双重身分。

8 boon   

n.恩赐，恩物，恩惠

参考例句：

• A car is a real boon when you live in the country.在郊外居住，有辆汽车确实极为方便。
• These machines have proved a real boon to disabled people.事实证明这些机器让残疾人受益匪浅。

9 collaborator   

n.合作者，协作者

参考例句：

• I need a collaborator to help me. 我需要个人跟我合作，帮我的忙。
• His collaborator, Hooke, was of a different opinion. 他的合作者霍克持有不同的看法。

10 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。

11 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。

12 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。

13 interactive   

adj.相互作用的，互相影响的，（电脑）交互的

参考例句：

• The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
• This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。

14 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

15 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

16 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。