VOA标准英语2015--一年过去了,中美洲难民裁决仍悬而未决

1 Year After Border Surge, Many Central American Refugees Remain in Limbo 一年过去了,中美洲难民裁决仍悬而未决

HOUSTON, TEXAS—

A year ago, the nation’s attention across the U.S. was focused on what was described as a surge of immigrants from Central America, many of whom were children unaccompanied by their parents. U.S. immigration authorities detained many of the children and many adults as well, but let thousands free to live with relatives in the United States while awaiting their court hearing on charges of entering the country illegally. Thousands of those immigrants continue efforts to gain legal status, with prospects¹ that are uncertain.

Every day, dozens of people come to the office of Nelson Reyes seeking help on everything from finding employment to filing income tax and pursuing a visa that would allow them to stay in this country legally.

He is the founder² and director of the Central American Resource Center, which is located in a shopping center frequented by Latin American immigrants.

“They are coming from a third world country to a new system and they do not know anything about the system here,” said Reyes.

He said the center operates on fees clients pay for services, which he said are much lower than those of law firms uptown. “If someone comes here and wants to fight their case in court, the attorneys up there charge between$4 to $5,000 and we charge here $700, $750, it depends,” he said.

Reyes is not an attorney, but he and his staff can help people with basic procedures that do not always require an attorney. “They have court cases pending³ so we advise them of what it is they need to file in court in order to get a better chance for their cases,” he stated.

But many thousands of Central Americans seeking refugee status have either been deported⁴ or are facing deportation⁵.

Officials say the number of people trying to cross the border this year is less than half of what it was last year, partly because Mexico has cracked down on illegal immigration from Central America.

U.S. officials have set up detention⁶ facilities in various parts of the country for minors⁷ and for women with small children, and has deported a large number of people who could not convince courts that they had been targeted by drug gangs back home.

Nelson Reyes, who came to the United States in 1990 from El Salvador, said the immigration system is often cruel. “That is why we need a system that is more humane⁸ that really understands that we are dealing⁹ with kids here that the way we treat them now will have an impact on their life,” he explained.

But, for now, many of these people fleeing violence and poverty in their homelands remain in a nether¹⁰ world, living here, but not able to pursue their own American dream.

1 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

4 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

6 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

7 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 nether   

adj.下部的，下面的；n.阴间；下层社会

参考例句：

• This terracotta army well represents his ambition yet to be realized in the nether-world.这一批兵马俑很可能代表他死后也要去实现的雄心。
• He was escorted back to the nether regions of Main Street.他被护送回中央大道南面的地方。