VOA标准英语2013--Civil Rights Pioneer Rosa Parks Honored with Capitol Statue

 

Civil Rights Pioneer Rosa Parks Honored with Capitol Statue

It's a lasting¹ tribute to Rosa Parks -- known as the mother of the U.S. civil rights movement.

Dignitaries gathered to unveil a nearly three-meter-tall bronze sculpture of Parks in the U.S. Capitol's Statuary Hall. It honors the African-American woman who changed American history in 1955 when she refused to move to the back of a segrated bus.

"We celebrate a seamstress slight in stature² but mighty³ in courage. She defied the odds⁴, and she defied injustice," Obama said.

President Obama paid tribute to her courage.

"Rosa Parks' singular act of disobediance launched a movement. And that is why this statue belongs in this hall to remind us no matter how lofty just what it is that leadership requires, what citizenship⁵ requires," Obama said.

It's the first full-size statue of an African-American woman in the Capitol. It recognizes Park's signature achievement, her rejection⁶ of racial segregation⁷ in the south in the 1950s. Congressman⁸ James Clyburn said Parks holds a rightful place among the other titans of American History also on display.

"This statue forever ordains⁹ Rosa Parks status as an icon¹⁰ of our nation's struggles to live out its declaration that we are all created equal," Clyburn said.

Parks made history in Montgomery, Alabama, in December 1955 when she refused to move to the back of the bus and give her seat to a white passenger. She was jailed, charged and fined. At the time, laws in the south required racial separation in buses, restaurants and public accommodations. Her action inspired a citywide bus boycott¹¹ by blacks, and it spawned¹² nationwide efforts to end segregation. In 1991, Parks told VOA she was motivated by a simple belief.

"I always believed in the golden rule: treat others as you wish to have them treat you. And I think that is a good rule to live by," Parks said.

Parks' minister, Dr. Martin Luther King, joined her cause and helped organize the bus boycott which lasted a year until the Supreme¹³ Court struck down segregtion.

"The long awaited mandate¹⁴ from the United States Supreme Court concerning bus segregation came to Montgomery. Segregation in public transportation is both legally and sociologically invalid," King said.

The Parks statue was authorized¹⁵ by an act of Congress in 2005 after she died.

Now, this recognition at the US Capitol ensures that her life and legacy¹⁶ will live on. 

1 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

2 stature   

n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材

参考例句：

• He is five feet five inches in stature.他身高5英尺5英寸。
• The dress models are tall of stature.时装模特儿的身材都较高。

3 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

4 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

5 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。

6 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

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 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

9 ordains   

v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的第三人称单数 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝、法律等）命令；判定

参考例句：

• The festival ordains the Jains to observe the ten universal supreme virtues in daily practical life. 盛典命令耆那教徒日常遵守十大美德。 来自互联网

10 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

11 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

12 spawned   

（鱼、蛙等）大量产（卵）( spawn的过去式和过去分词 )； 大量生产

参考例句：

• The band's album spawned a string of hit singles. 这支乐队的专辑繁衍出一连串走红的单曲唱片。
• The computer industry has spawned a lot of new companies. 由于电脑工业的发展，许多新公司纷纷成立。

13 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。

14 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

15 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

16 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。