VOA慢速英语2014 AS IT IS 2014-03-31 Interracial Marriages Increase in US 美国跨种族婚姻增加

 

AS IT IS 2014-03-31 Interracial Marriages Increase in US 美国跨种族婚姻增加

Hello, and welcome to As It Is from VOA Learning English.

I’m Christopher Cruise in Washington.

Today we report on the growing number of marriages between two people of different racial groups. 

“Society has become more accepting of it -- although we still get looks sometimes.”

And we go to an event designed for same-sex partners who plan to get married.

“I think it’s great that now we have this opportunity and it’s great to see so many vendors¹ here who support the community.”

Interracial and same-sex marriage: those are the subjects of today’s program as we help you learn to read, speak, write and understand everyday American English.

Listen carefully, and before you know it, you will have improved your American English by listening to As It Is here on VOA.

Number of Interracial Marriages in US Increases

In 1959, only four percent of Americans supported the idea of interracial marriage -- that is, a marriage between people of different races. Today, the United States has its first biracial president. The father of President Barack Obama was from Kenya. His mother -- a white American -- was from the state of Kansas. 

One recent study found that 87 percent of Americans approve of interracial marriage. That information comes from the research company Gallup, Incorporated.

In New York City, the number of people who approve of interracial marriage may be even higher than 87 percent. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, a white man, is married to Chirlane McCray, an African-American woman. They are the parents of two biracial children. 

But interracial couples were not always welcome in the country. In 1958, a Virginia couple, Mildred and Richard Loving, were arrested for violating a state law banning interracial marriage. 

“I saw this light, you know, and I woke up, and it was the policeman standing³ beside the bed. And he told us to get up -- that we was under arrest.”

That was Mildred Loving. She and her husband fought their arrest in court. And in 1967, the United States Supreme⁴ Court ruled that interracial marriage bans were unconstitutional. Since then, the number of such marriages has slowly increased. The U.S. government says 15 percent of all new marriages are now between individuals of different races.

“Society has become more accepting of it -- although we still get looks sometimes.”

That was Gerri Buchanan. She and her husband, Tom Rogers, have been married for five years. Both of them have children from earlier interracial marriages.

They are one of a growing number of multiracial families in New York City. Political observers say New Yorkers liked the fact that Bill de Blasio is part of a mixed family. They say the family is partly responsible for his strong victory in local elections last November.

Ken² Tanabe created a celebration of interracial families called Loving Day. It is named for Mildred and Richard Loving. Mr. Tanabe says Mr. de Blasio’s election shows New York City is changing.

“It’s always been a diverse place, but there are more and more couples that are interracial, and more and more people that identify as multi-ethnic, and with the election of Bill de Blasio, you know, I think we’re seeing more and more acceptance and support for those families and couples and individuals.”

Writer Aja Monet says the mayor’s marriage is helping⁵ change the image of African-American women in popular culture and politics.

“You know, if you don’t look a certain way, if you’re not Eurocentric in your, your figure, or in your identity -- I mean look how many times have people tear, tore down Michelle Obama based off of her body, and based off of how she, she looks, and this is from white men a lot of the time. And so here you have this other man who’s like ‘Let me kiss my beautiful black wife in, in front of you, and I love her,’ and it’s not about that.”

Some people say Mayor de Blasio, his wife and children represent a new America. They say it is one where the fastest-growing group under age 18 is children of mixed race.

A Wedding Show for Same-Sex Couples

Same-sex marriage is now legal in at least 18 American states and the District of Columbia. The federal government also recognizes same-sex marriages. That is good news for gay and lesbian couples, who are now busy making plans to get married. It is also good news for the photographers, hotels, restaurants and other businesses that are happy to help them celebrate the big day. Expositions targeting this new market are becoming more popular.

One example was the recent Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Wedding Expo in Baltimore, Maryland. More than 30 businesses sent representatives to the event to market products like dresses, wine and wedding cakes.

Michael Sofield and Jamie Barnes came from New Jersey⁶, where same-sex marriage is legal. But Mr. Sofield says they plan to get married in Maryland in May.

“I think it’s great that now we have this opportunity and it’s great to see so many vendors here who support the community.”

Marianne Puechl and her same-sex partner began organizing these expositions in 2003. That was before same-sex marriage was legal anywhere in the country. She says it can be difficult for gays and lesbians to attend wedding expos targeting heterosexual couples. She says some businesses may not approve of same-sex marriages. But that never happened at her shows.

“They’re just immediately understood to be the brides or the grooms⁷ and they go from there and they launch directly into the joy and the excitement of planning their day.”

Cristina Dimperio of Maryland plans to get married next year. She likes going to an event where she is accepted.

“It’s definitely a good thing. We’ve been trying to do this for a long time and now that we can actually do it, it feels great.”

Her mother, Catia Dimperio, is happy for Cristina and her girlfriend of six years.

“She’s 26 and we’re all ready for her to get married."

Visitors to the wedding expo could see beautiful clothing and jewelry⁸, and a model who wore them. 

Betsy Robinson owns a bridal store. She says she has been selling an increasing number of wedding dresses to lesbian brides.

“It used to be that, I found it interesting that even if they were shopping with the mother, the mom wouldn’t say ‘My daughter is marrying another woman,’ whereas today that’s very, very common.”

Joseph Smith and his husband own a wedding invitation business.  He says a lot of businesses are not sure how to work with the gay and lesbian community.

“Because we’re part of it, people feel more comfortable working with us.”

Marianne Puechl says the wedding expos that have the largest crowds are in states where same-sex marriage is not yet permitted. She says that even in those states, many couples have ceremonies to celebrate their love.

And that’s our program for today.

 

I’m Christopher Cruise reporting from VOA Learning English headquarters in Washington. 

1 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

2 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

7 grooms   

n.新郎( groom的名词复数 )；马夫v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的第三人称单数 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗

参考例句：

• Plender end Wilcox became joint grooms of the chambers. 普伦德和威尔科克斯成为共同的贴身侍从。 来自辞典例句
• Egypt: Families, rather than grooms, propose to the bride. 埃及：在埃及，由新郎的家人，而不是新郎本人，向新娘求婚。 来自互联网

8 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。