VOA常速英语2020--《美国残疾人法案》（在线收听）

Years ago discrimination against people with disabilities often started right at birth. When I was born, a doctor came in to my mom and explained to her my diagnosis in this way, your son is a midget like you see in the circus, so in that one sentence that he said to my mother he's basically laid out my entire future. Okay, just in one second, Lydia boss is busy firing me because I make him uncomfortable. But luckily, times have changed. Woodburn who was diagnosed with dwarfism went on to have a successful acting career, appearing in more than 30 films and making more than 150 television appearances,including the popular TV series Seinfeld, It's little people. you got that. His success reflects the impact of the ADA. The ADA stands for the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the important thing that we would really want everyone to know, is that it's a civil rights law, individuals with disabilities were not part of that protection, and it became evident that they were not being included in ways that other previously marginalized groups were. Signed into law by president George HW Bush in 1990, the ADA provided protection against discrimination to millions of Americans in school, on the job, and in all public and private places. By doing so, it improved access and quality of life for millions.

多年前，人们往往会在残疾人出生时就开始抱有歧视。我刚出生的时候，有一位医生找到了我的妈妈，他用这种方式向我妈妈解释了我的诊断，你的儿子是个侏儒，就像你在马戏团里看到的那样，所以从医生对我母亲说的这句话中，他基本上把我的整个未来都规划好了。好了，你等一会吧。莉迪亚老板现在正忙着解雇我呢，因为我让他不舒服了。但幸运的是，时代发生了变化。虽然伍德本被诊断出患有侏儒症，但他的演艺生涯一直很成功，他出演了30多部电影，在电视上露面超过150次，其中还参演过很火的电视剧《宋飞》。是你这个小人。被你发现了。伍德本的成功也反映了《美国残疾人法案》（ADA）带来的影响。ADA代表《美国残疾人法案》，最重要的是我们真的希望大家都了解，残疾人并不是受《民权法》保护的群体，而且很明显，残疾人群体并没有像那些之前被边缘化的群体一样，被包括在法律内。1990年，《美国残疾人法案》由布什总统签署成为法律，这部法案为数百万美国人提供保护，让他们在学校、工作岗位以及所有公共和私人场所免受歧视。通过践行这样的保护，它改善了数百万人的生活。

I think one of the most important things that we look at with the Americans with Disabilities Act is its opportunity to level the playing field, But in the area of employment for people with disabilities, Goss acknowledges that the number remains low. In 2019 less than 20 percent of disabled adults had jobs, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. It's one reason why more advocacy is needed says Woodburn, and part of my advocacy uh with my own industry has been to change the landscape of employment of actors with disability for example, because the belief system is that for kids, if you can't see it you can't be it, But many of the laws provisions have improved lives, and even benefited those without disabilities. Ramps and curb cuts designed to accommodate wheelchairs, for example, help others. After those were put in place, people started to see more and more mothers walking their babies,uh, in the strollers and delivery persons using those, and text messaging was born out of technology for the hearing impaired. We owe that to the deaf community and their need to have that access. As the ADA celebrates 30 years of advancing the lives of millions of Americans, Woodburn says there's still plenty of room for improvement. We have to be included every step of the way and were just not right now, so my hope is that anyone that has diversity or inclusion discussion um either as an advocate or as a corporate leader, that they always include disability, despite how uncomfortable it might make them feel. Julie Tabo VOA News Washington.

我认为《美国残疾人法案》中最重要的一点在于它为残疾人提供了公平竞争的机会。但戈斯承认，残疾人就业几率仍然很低。据美国劳工统计局统计，在2019年，只有不到20%的残疾人有工作。伍德本表示，这也是需要更多宣传的原因之一。比如说，我在演员行业中进行的一部分宣传就是为了改变残疾演员的就业环境，因为信仰体系是针对孩子的，如果你看不到，你就不可能做到，但许多法律规定已经改善了人们的生活，甚至让许多身体健全的人受益。比如说为容纳轮椅而设计的坡道和路堑，这些设施同样惠及他人。这些基础设施就位后，人们开始看到越来越多的母亲用婴儿车推着孩子在坡道上走来走去，送货员也能获益。而短信是为有听力障碍的人而诞生的。我们应该感谢聋人群体，也要谢谢他们有使用短信的需求。在《美国残疾人法案》庆祝数百万美国人的生活进步30周年之际，伍德本表示，还有很大的改进空间。美国迈进未来的每一步中，我们残疾人群体都应该被涵盖在内，但现在还未实现，所以我希望任何一个身陷残疾的人都能参与多元化或包容性的讨论，无论是作为一名律师还是一名企业老板，尽管这会让他们觉得很不舒服。美国之音新闻朱莉·塔博华盛顿报道。