美国国家公共电台 NPR A Giving History: Smithsonian Exhibit Showcases Americans' Charitable Acts

A Giving History: Smithsonian Exhibit Showcases Americans' Charitable Acts

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December is by far the biggest month for charitable giving. But all year long, Americans raise billions of dollars with walkathons and charity balls and online fundraising appeals. Now a new exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution here in Washington explores the ways Americans give and why, with a look at philanthropy going back centuries. NPR's Pam Fessler has this preview.

PAM FESSLER, BYLINE²: Remember a couple of years ago, when it seems like we were all one big happy family? Americans of every age and political stripe joined in a common pursuit...

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: (Cheering).

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Cheering).

FESSLER: ...Pouring buckets of ice water on each other's heads to raise money for ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease. It turned out to be one of the most successful fundraising efforts in U.S. history. But it had a very modest beginning.

BONNIE LILIENFELD: A wonderful blue ice bucket, which, you know, just looks like any pail that you would wash your floor with.

FESSLER: Bonnie Lilienfeld of the National Museum of American History says the pail belonged to a New York woman, Jeanette Senerchia, whose husband has ALS. A relative challenged her to dump ice on her head to raise awareness³ about the disease and post it online. She did. And the rest is philanthropic history.

LILIENFELD: People just started dumping ice on their heads. You know, it seems like a kind of crazy thing. And at the time, you know, people wondered what it was really going to do. But in the end, I think they raised over $115 million.

FESSLER: And it became the latest symbol of Americans' creativity when it comes to giving. Lilienfeld says U.S. philanthropy comes in many shapes and sizes.

LILIENFELD: Like this wonderful 1764 silver plate that was given by Thomas Hancock to his church in Boston, Mass.

FESSLER: It's a beautiful communion dish inscribed⁴ with the church's name and also Hancock's.

So everybody would know he gave this plate.

LILIENFELD: Right, right.

FESSLER: Lilienfeld says people don't give just to help others but sometimes to help themselves - a kind of status symbol. Still, U.S. philanthropy has filled some important social needs, as in the 19th century, when industrialist⁵ Andrew Carnegie used his money to build libraries across the nation. He believed the rich had a responsibility to support the common good. But Lilienfeld says charity isn't just about those with money.

LILIENFELD: It's amazing what just a little bit can do.

FESSLER: She points to a small orange box, the kind trick-or-treaters used for years to collect spare change, raising more than $175 million for UNICEF. And, sometimes, it's not even about money. The exhibit includes a blood-donation kit⁶.

LILIENFELD: That's really sort of the ultimate gift of really giving of yourself. So we included that story here to really try to get people to understand, sometimes, the smallest act really is an act of philanthropy.

FESSLER: She says many Americans prefer to do something rather than to write a check. There's a tool belt here that a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity used to build a house and a T-shirt from a charity race.

LILIENFELD: Let's see. We also have a...

FESSLER: Ah, Jerry Lewis.

LILIENFELD: ...Jerry Lewis telethon. Of course, you can't talk about giving without talking about Jerry Lewis.

FESSLER: Whose annual fundraiser for muscular dystrophy was a fixture⁷ of American life for more than 40 years. But not all giving was quite so benevolent⁸. The exhibit includes a 1793 letter from a Maryland slaveholder granting one of his slaves her freedom, a distorted view of philanthropy indeed. Lilienfeld says, for the most part, giving in the U.S. has been aimed at improving life and seems to fill a need we have to take matters into our own hands.

LILIENFELD: It's this idea that we, you know, come together in a crisis. We come together to take care of each other. We come together to get things done.

FESSLER: Even if that means coming together under a bucket of ice. Pam Fessler, NPR News.

1 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

4 inscribed   

v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接

参考例句：

• His name was inscribed on the trophy. 他的名字刻在奖杯上。
• The names of the dead were inscribed on the wall. 死者的名字被刻在墙上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 industrialist   

n.工业家，实业家

参考例句：

• The industrialist's son was kidnapped.这名实业家的儿子被绑架了。
• Mr.Smith was a wealthy industrialist,but he was not satisfied with life.史密斯先生是位富有的企业家，可他对生活感到不满意。

6 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

7 fixture   

n.固定设备；预定日期；比赛时间；定期存款

参考例句：

• Lighting fixture must be installed at once.必须立即安装照明设备。
• The cordless kettle may now be a fixture in most kitchens.无绳电热水壶现在可能是多数厨房的固定设备。

8 benevolent   

adj.仁慈的，乐善好施的

参考例句：

• His benevolent nature prevented him from refusing any beggar who accosted him.他乐善好施的本性使他不会拒绝走上前向他行乞的任何一个乞丐。
• He was a benevolent old man and he wouldn't hurt a fly.他是一个仁慈的老人，连只苍蝇都不愿伤害。