PBS高端访谈:种族歧视依然是候选人的热议话题(在线收听

JUDY WOODRUFF: Speaking of the Democratic presidential candidates, they crisscrossed the country over the weekend. As Yamiche Alcindor reports, issues of racial injustice remained at the forefront.

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), Presidential Candidate: Hello, everybody!

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: For some 2020 Democratic candidates, the road to the nomination ran through New Orleans and the Essence Fest this weekend. The event is a gathering put on by the company behind Essence magazine. A number of candidates, like California Senator Kamala Harris, came to sway this audience of mostly black voters with a policy-first pitch.

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), Presidential Candidate: So, a typical black family has just $10 of wealth for every $100 held by a white family. So we must right that wrong and, after generations of discrimination, give black families a real shot at homeownership.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Her plan aims to put $100 billion toward helping millions of minority homebuyers, specifically toward down payments and closing costs. It also includes proposals to allow more people to build credit histories. It would also bolster laws against housing and lending discrimination. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren arrived with a new plan of her own, having just written an op-ed for the Essence Web site. We need to demand, she wrote, that companies and the government properly value the work of black women and hold them accountable if they don't.

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), Presidential Candidate: My plan is to use the power of the federal government on a half-of-a-trillion dollars of government contracts to make sure every government contractor in this country doesn't just talk the talk, but walks the walk on equal pay for equal work and a truly diverse work force that looks like America.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: New Jersey Senator Cory Booker also came with a policy-first approach. He highlighted his baby bonds idea of savings accounts for children born in the United States. Former Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke kept his focus on funding for historically black colleges and universities, as well as majority-minority school districts. And Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, came touting his plan to boost minority entrepreneurship. Meanwhile, former Vice President Joe Biden spent his weekend in South Carolina, where black voters historically have had significant sway in Democratic primaries. This weekend, he apologized for previous comments about working with segregationists who served in the U.S. Senate decades ago.

JOSEPH BIDEN (D), Presidential Candidate: Was I wrong a few weeks ago to somehow give the impression to people that I was praising those men who I successfully opposed time and again? Yes, I was. I regret it. And I'm sorry for any of the pain or misconception they may have caused anybody.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Today, Eric Swalwell became the first Democratic candidate to drop out of the race.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): Today ends our presidential campaign.

YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Before today, the California congressman was on the bubble for making it into the second set of primary debates later this month. For the PBS NewsHour, I'm Yamiche Alcindor.

朱迪·伍德拉夫:今天,我们来聊聊民主党的总统候选人们,他们在刚刚过去的这个周末里可是奔波于全国各地。根据我台记者阿尔辛多的报道,种族歧视问题依然核心话题。

参议员科里·布克,总统候选人:大家好!

阿尔辛多:对一些想要参加2020总统大选的民主党候选人来说,本周末,为了获得民主党提名的他们来到了新奥尔良和经典节现场。这次活动是由《本质》杂志主办的。许多候选人,比如加州参议员卡玛拉·哈里斯是通过政策为先的论调来说服听众的,其中大部分选民都是黑人。

参议员卡玛拉·哈里斯,总统候选人:一般情况下,一个普通黑人家庭如果有10美元的话,那么一个普通美国家庭就有100美元,就是这样的比例。鉴于此,我们必须纠正这个问题,必须要在数代人经历了种族歧视之后,给广大黑人家庭们以主人翁的归属感。

阿尔辛多:哈里斯计划的目标是拨款1000亿美元,这笔钱将用来帮助购房人群中数百万的少数群体。具体来说,是要帮助他们支付首付和结算费用。她还有一部分计划是让更多人建立起自己的信用纪录。此外,她还希望能够推进立法,抵制住房和借贷方面的歧视。马萨诸塞州参议员伊丽莎白·沃伦则宣布了与众不同的计划——她为《本质》杂志官网写了一篇专栏文章。在这篇文章中,她写道:我们需要要求各公司和政府以正确的标准评判黑人女性的劳动。而且,如果有公司或政府违背,那么我们就要追究他们的责任。

参议员伊丽莎白·沃伦,总统候选人:我的计划是动用联邦政府对价值5000亿美元政府合同的支配权力,用这笔资金来确保美国的每个政府承包商不只是嘴上说说而已,他们还要采取实际行动,为黑人争取平等的工作和平等的收入,让我们的劳动力大军充满多样性,这才是美国该有的样子。

阿尔辛多:新泽西州参议员科里·布克也提出了政策为先的论调。他强调了为储蓄账户提供婴儿债券的想法,面向的用户是在美国出生的儿童。前德克萨斯州国会议员奥洛克则专注于为黑人大学和少数族裔占主体的校区出资。此外,印第安纳州南本德市长皮特则极力鼓吹自己要促进少数族裔进入商界的机会。与此同时,前副总统乔·拜登这个周末去往了南卡罗来纳州,那里的黑人选民在民主党初选问题上十分动摇。本周末,拜登为之前的言论道歉,因为他之前说过自己数十年前曾与参议院的一些种族隔离主义者共事过。

乔·拜登,总统候选人:我经常反对一些人的看法,但几周前,有些人却对我留下了这样一个印象——我在夸这些种族主义者。留下这样的印象,是我的错吗?是的,是我的错,我很后悔说过让人误解的话。如果我的言论给一些人造成伤痛或误解的话,那我也感到十分抱歉。

阿尔辛多:今天,斯沃尔威尔成为第一位出局的民主党候选人。

众议员斯沃尔威尔:今天,我的总统竞选之路告一段落。

阿尔辛多:今天之前,这位来自加州的议员本来是在准备本月下旬即将举行的第二轮竞选辩论的。感谢收听阿尔辛多发回的《新闻一小时》。

  原文地址:http://www.tingroom.com/lesson/pbs/sh/502472.html