VOA常速英语2015--中美国家难民在美国处境艰难

中美国家难民在美国处境艰难

HOUSTON, TEXAS— A year ago, the nation’s attention across the U.S. was focused on what was described as a surge of immigrants from Central America, many of whom were children unaccompanied by their parents. U.S. immigration authorities detained many of the children and many adults as well, but let thousands free to live with relatives in the United States while awaiting their court hearing on charges of entering the country illegally. Thousands of those immigrants continue efforts to gain legal status, with prospects¹ that are uncertain.

Every day, dozens of people come to the office of Nelson Reyes seeking help on everything from finding employment to filing income tax and pursuing a visa that would allow them to stay in this country legally.

每天都会几十人来到纳尔逊·雷耶斯的办公室来寻求帮助，包括找工作、申报收入税、以及能让他们合法留在美国的签证。

He is the founder² and director of the Central American Resource Center, which is located in a shopping center frequented by Latin American immigrants.

他是中美资源中心的创立者和负责人，该组织位于一个拉美移民喜欢光顾的购物中心。

“They are coming from a third world country to a new system and they do not know anything about the system here,” said Reyes.

“他们从第三世界来到新的国家，所以对这个国家的制度一无所知。”

He said the center operates on fees clients pay for services, which he said are much lower than those of law firms uptown. “If someone comes here and wants to fight their case in court, the attorneys up there charge between$4 to $5,000 and we charge here $700, $750, it depends,” he said.

他说该中心靠客户缴纳的服务费来维持运营，他说这个服务费比住宅区律师事务所的费用要低很多。“如果有人想打官司来这里，那里的代理律师就会收费4万到5万美元，而我们看情况只收费700到750美元。”

Reyes is not an attorney, but he and his staff can help people with basic procedures that do not always require an attorney. “They have court cases pending³ so we advise them of what it is they need to file in court in order to get a better chance for their cases,” he stated.

雷耶斯并不是代理律师，但他和他的员工们能帮助人们处理一些并不总是需要代理律师的基本程序。“如果他们有悬而未决的案件，我们就会建议他们向法院申诉需要些什么，这样获胜的几率就会大些。”

But many thousands of Central Americans seeking refugee status have either been deported⁴ or are facing deportation⁵.

但有数千中美国家寻求庇护的人要么已被驱逐，要么面临被驱逐的处境。

Officials say the number of people trying to cross the border this year is less than half of what it was last year, partly because Mexico has cracked down on illegal immigration from Central America.

官方称今年试图越境的人口数量不到去年的一半，这部分因为墨西哥对中美非法移民的打击。

U.S. officials have set up detention⁶ facilities in various parts of the country for minors⁷ and for women with small children, and has deported a large number of people who could not convince courts that they had been targeted by drug gangs back home.

美国官方在各地为未成年人和带小孩的妇女成立了拘留中心，还驱逐了大批未能让法院信服他们在本国被贩毒团伙打击的人。

Nelson Reyes, who came to the United States in 1990 from El Salvador, said the immigration system is often cruel. “That is why we need a system that is more humane⁸ that really understands that we are dealing⁹ with kids here that the way we treat them now will have an impact on their life,” he explained.

纳尔逊·雷耶斯1990年从萨尔瓦多来到美国，他说移民制度通常很残忍。“因此我们需要更人性化的制度，这个制度要能明白，我们现在对待孩子的态度将会影响他们的一生。”

 

But, for now, many of these people fleeing violence and poverty in their homelands remain in a nether¹⁰ world, living here, but not able to pursue their own American dream.

但就目前来说，很多逃避国内暴力和贫困的人仍处境险恶，虽然生活在这里，但却无法追求自己的美国梦。

1 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

4 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

6 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

7 minors   

n.未成年人( minor的名词复数 )；副修科目；小公司；[逻辑学]小前提v.[主美国英语]副修，选修，兼修( minor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The law forbids shops to sell alcohol to minors. 法律禁止商店向未成年者出售含酒精的饮料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had three minors this semester. 这学期他有三门副修科目。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 humane   

adj.人道的，富有同情心的

参考例句：

• Is it humane to kill animals for food?宰杀牲畜来吃合乎人道吗？
• Their aim is for a more just and humane society.他们的目标是建立一个更加公正、博爱的社会。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 nether   

adj.下部的，下面的；n.阴间；下层社会

参考例句：

• This terracotta army well represents his ambition yet to be realized in the nether-world.这一批兵马俑很可能代表他死后也要去实现的雄心。
• He was escorted back to the nether regions of Main Street.他被护送回中央大道南面的地方。