美国国家公共电台 NPR Ferguson, Mo., Residents Worry About Low Voter Turnout In Mayoral Election

 

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

People in Ferguson, Mo., will vote to choose a mayor tomorrow. It's the town's first mayoral election since 2014. And that was the year a white police officer shot and killed an 18-year-old black man, Michael Brown. Then there were the protests and the riots and big changes in Ferguson's city council. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum went to Ferguson to see if voters were just as passionate¹ now.

JASON ROSENBAUM, BYLINE²: In 2014, 37-year-old James Knowles was just re-elected mayor without opposition³ when one of his city's white police officers shot and killed African-American Michael Brown. Knowles suddenly became the public face of a small town under intense scrutiny⁴. Some questioned whether Knowles would remain in his post. He did, and he's now running for a third term.

JAMES KNOWLES: I don't believe that I should stay around forever. We do have term limits in our community. But I do believe that these next three years are critical. It's critical that we get ourselves back on the right path, that we stay on that path, and that we plot a future for the community that future generations can take up that mantle⁵ and move forward.

ROSENBAUM: Things have changed in Ferguson since Brown's death. Its city government is more racially diverse, especially compared to 2014, when the city council and staff was largely white and the Justice Department accused it of targeting black motorists for tickets to raise revenue. But Ferguson still has significant challenges - declining tax revenue, understaffed city departments and having to follow a federal consent decree mandating⁶ major changes in its police department.

ELLA JONES: How you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Good.

ROSENBAUM: Councilwoman Ella Jones is mingling⁷ today with patrons at a local restaurant. She's seeking to become Ferguson's first black mayor and says she can provide the right type of leadership for the city.

JONES: Every time a flashpoint happens, we don't have to call the governor. We could go out and talk to the people. The people want to be heard. Right now the people are at a point that they don't trust the leadership.

ROSENBAUM: African-Americans make up the majority of the population here. But black voter turnout has traditionally been low, in part because of a transient population. Ferguson resident Mildred Clines worries that the African-American community is becoming exhausted⁸ with the slow pace of change. And that could affect voter turnout in tomorrow's election.

MILDRED CLINES: And I try to convince them different. I'm trying to tell them that you have a voice. You can speak your voice. You can make a difference. But a lot of them feel like they haven't seen enough change to make a difference.

ROSENBAUM: Activists⁹ hoped for vigorous civic¹⁰ participation¹¹ after Brown's shooting death, but turnout dropped in 2016 when Heather Robinett was elected to the city council. Robinett says while lots of residents remain invested in Ferguson's success, the sense of perseverance¹² is coupled with fatigue¹³.

HEATHER ROBINETT: We're either brave or crazy sometimes, you know? Like, what - that we continue to stick through it and work through this tricky¹⁴ navigation. You know, like, what's the best way to move forward as a community as a whole? And when you're looking at various viewpoints, it's hard to converge¹⁵ on what that looks like.

ROSENBAUM: Whoever is elected tomorrow will serve as mayor for three years. They'll have to cope both with Ferguson's controversial past and its continuing challenges. For NPR News, I'm Jason Rosenbaum in Ferguson.

(SOUNDBITE OF KRAAK AND SMAAK SONG, "HANDS OF TIME")

1 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

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 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

5 mantle   

n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红

参考例句：

• The earth had donned her mantle of brightest green.大地披上了苍翠欲滴的绿色斗篷。
• The mountain was covered with a mantle of snow.山上覆盖着一层雪。

6 mandating   

托管（mandate的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Current requirements mandating that committees keep minutes are too general. 目前对委员会要保持详细记录的指令性要求，还是太过一般化了。
• Mandating that workers who quit without permission forfeit a month's wages. 规定工人私自离岗将受到罚没一个月工资的处罚。

7 mingling   

adj.混合的

参考例句：

• There was a spring of bitterness mingling with that fountain of sweets. 在这个甜蜜的源泉中间，已经掺和进苦涩的山水了。
• The mingling of inconsequence belongs to us all. 这场矛盾混和物是我们大家所共有的。

8 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

11 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

12 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

13 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

14 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

15 converge   

vi.会合；聚集，集中；(思想、观点等)趋近

参考例句：

• The results converge towards this truth.其结果趋近于这个真理。
• Parallel lines converge at infinity.平行线永不相交。