经典英文演讲

来源:百度文库 编辑:神马文学网 时间:2024/04/29 21:01:21
I have a Dream 我有一个梦想
by Martin Luther King, Jr.
小马丁·路德·金
August 28, 1963
马丁·路德·金(公元1929—1968年),美国黑人律师,著名黑人民权运动领袖。一生曾三次被捕,三次被行刺,1964年获诺贝尔和平奖。1968年被种族主义分子枪杀。他被誉为近百年来八大最具有说服力的演说家之一。1963年他领导25万人向华盛顿进军“大游行”,为黑人争取自由平等和就业。马丁·路德·金在游行集会上发表了这篇著名演说。
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.
今天,我高兴地同大家一起,参加这次将成为我国历史上为了争取自由而举行的最伟大的示威集会。
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity.
100年前,一位伟大的美国人——今天我们就站在他象征性的身影下——签署了《解放宣言》。这项重要法令的颁布,对于千百万灼烤于非正义残焰中的黑奴,犹如带来希望之光的硕大灯塔,恰似结束漫漫长夜禁锢的欢畅黎明。
But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling condition.
然而,100年后,黑人依然没有获得自由。100年后,黑人依然悲惨地蹒跚于种族隔离和种族歧视的枷锁之下。100年后,黑人依然生活在物质繁荣翰海的贫困孤岛上。100年后,黑人依然在美国社会中间向隅而泣,依然感到自己在国土家园中流离漂泊。所以,我们今天来到这里,要把这骇人听闻的情况公诸于众。
In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
从某种意义上说,我们来到国家的首都是为了兑现一张支票。我们共和国的缔造者在拟写宪法和独立宣言的辉煌篇章时,就签署了一张每一个美国人都能继承的期票。这张期票向所有人承诺——不论白人还是黑人——都享有不可让渡的生存权、自由权和追求幸福权。
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation.
然而,今天美国显然对她的有色公民拖欠着这张期票。美国没有承兑这笔神圣的债务,而是开始给黑人一张空头支票——一张盖着“资金不足”的印戳被退回的支票。但是,我们决不相信正义的银行会破产。我们决不相信这个国家巨大的机会宝库会资金不足。
So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
因此,我们来兑现这张支票。这张支票将给我们以宝贵的自由和正义的保障。
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.
我们来到这块圣地还为了提醒美国:现在正是万分紧急的时刻。现在不是从容不迫悠然行事或服用渐进主义镇静剂的时候。现在是实现民主诺言的时候。现在是走出幽暗荒凉的种族隔离深谷,踏上种族平等的阳关大道的时候。现在是使我们国家走出种族不平等的流沙,踏上充满手足之情的磐石的时候。现在是使上帝所有孩子真正享有公正的时候。
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning.
忽视这一时刻的紧迫性,对于国家将会是致命的。自由平等的朗朗秋日不到来,黑人顺情合理哀怨的酷暑就不会过去。1963年不是一个结束,而是一个开端。
Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
如果国家依然我行我素,那些希望黑人只需出出气就会心满意足的人将大失所望。在黑人得到公民权之前,美国既不会安宁,也不会平静。反抗的旋风将继续震撼我们国家的基石,直至光辉灿烂的正义之日来临。
But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.
但是,对于站在通向正义之宫艰险门槛上的人们,有一些话我必须要说。在我们争取合法地位的过程中,切不要错误行事导致犯罪。我们切不要吞饮仇恨辛酸的苦酒,来解除对于自由的饮渴。
We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
我们应该永远得体地、纪律严明地进行斗争。我们不能容许我们富有创造性的抗议沦为暴力行动。我们应该不断升华到用灵魂力量对付肉体力量的崇高境界。
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
席卷黑人社会的新的奇迹般的战斗精神,不应导致我们对所有白人的不信任——因为许多白人兄弟已经认识到:他们的命运同我们的命运紧密相连,他们的自由同我们的自由休戚相关。他们今天来到这里参加集会就是明证。
We cannot walk alone.And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.
我们不能单独行动。当我们行动时,我们必须保证勇往直前。我们不能后退。有人问热心民权运动的人:“你们什么时候会感到满意?”只要黑人依然是不堪形容的警察暴行恐怖的牺牲品,我们就决不会满意。只要我们在旅途劳顿后,却被公路旁汽车游客旅社和城市旅馆拒之门外,我们就决不会满意。只要黑人的基本活动范围只限于从狭小的黑人居住区到较大的黑人居住区,我们就决不会满意。只要我们的孩子被“仅供白人”的牌子剥夺个性,损毁尊严,我们就决不会满意。只要密西西比州的黑人不能参加选举,纽约州的黑人认为他们与选举毫不相干,我们就决不会满意。不,不,我们不会满意,直至公正似水奔流,正义如泉喷涌。
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.
我并非没有注意到你们有些人历尽艰难困苦来到这里。你们有些人刚刚走出狭小的牢房。有些人来自因追求自由而遭受迫害风暴袭击和警察暴虐狂飙摧残的地区。你们饱经风霜,历尽苦难。继续努力吧,要相信:无辜受苦终得拯救。
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.
回到密西西比去吧;回到亚拉巴马去吧;回到南卡罗来纳去吧;回到佐治亚去吧;回到路易斯安那去吧;回到我们北方城市中的贫民窟和黑人居住区去吧。要知道,这种情况能够而且将会改变。我们切不要在绝望的深渊里沉沦。
I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
朋友们,今天我要对你们说,尽管眼下困难重重,但我依然怀有一个梦。这个梦深深植根于美国梦之中。
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
我梦想有一天,这个国家将会奋起,实现其立国信条的真谛:“我们认为这些真理不言而喻:人人生而平等。”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.
我梦想有一天,在佐治亚州的红色山岗上,昔日奴隶的儿子能够同昔日奴隶主的儿子同席而坐,亲如手足。
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
我梦想有一天,甚至连密西西比州——一个非正义和压迫的热浪逼人的荒漠之州,也会改造成为自由和公正的青青绿洲。
I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
我梦想有一天,我的四个小女儿将生活在一个不是以皮肤的颜色,而是以品格的优劣作为评判标准的国家里。
I have a dream today.
我今天怀有一个梦。
I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.
我梦想有一天,亚拉巴马州会有所改变——尽管该州州长现在仍滔滔不绝地说什么要对联邦法令提出异议和拒绝执行——在那里,黑人儿童能够和白人儿童兄弟姐妹般地携手并行。
I have a dream today.
我今天怀有一个梦。
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.
我梦想有一天,深谷弥合,高山夷平,歧路化坦途,曲径成通衢,上帝的光华再现,普天下生灵共谒。
This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.
这是我们的希望。这是我将带回南方去的信念。有了这个信念,我们就能绝望之山开采出希望之石。有了这个信念,我们就能把这个国家的嘈杂刺耳的争吵声,变为充满手足之情的悦耳交响曲。有了这个信念,我们就能一同工作,一同祈祷,一同斗争,一同入狱,一同维护自由,因为我们知道,我们终有一天会获得自由。
This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."
从到了这一天,上帝的所有孩子都能以新的含义高唱这首歌:
我的祖国,
可爱的自由之邦,
我为您歌唱。
这是我祖先终老的地方,
这是早期移民自豪的地方,
让自由之声,
响彻每一座山岗。
And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!
Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California!
But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!
Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
如果美国要成为伟大的国家,这一点必须实现。因此,让自由之声响彻新罕布什尔州的巍峨高峰!
让自由之声响彻纽约州的崇山峻岭!
让自由之声响彻宾夕法尼亚州的阿勒格尼高峰!
让自由之声响彻科罗拉多州冰雪皑皑的洛基山!
让自由之声响彻加利福尼亚州的婀娜群峰!
不,不仅如此;让自由之声响彻佐治亚州的石山!
让自由之声响彻田纳西州的望山!
让自由之声响彻密西西比州的一座座山峰,一个个土丘!
让自由之声响彻每一个山岗!
When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"
当我们让自由之声轰响,当我们让自由之声响彻每一个大村小庄,每一个州府城镇,我们就能加速这一天的到来。那时,上帝的所有孩子,黑人和白人,犹太教徒和非犹太教徒,耶稣教徒和天主教徒,将能携手同唱那首古老的黑人灵歌:“终于自由了!终于自由了!感谢全能的上帝,我们终于自由了!”
美前总统卡特获诺贝尔和平奖演讲
Former President Carter Is Awarded Nobel Peace Prize
October 11, 2002
Nobel Peace Prize winner Jimmy Carter delivers the following speech after receiving the Nobel medal and diploma presentation in the Oslo City Hall.
美国前总统吉米·卡特赢得2002年度诺贝尔和平奖。诺贝尔和平奖颁发给吉米·卡特是为了表彰他为寻求和平解决国际冲突所作出的不懈努力。他在领奖时抨击美国对伊拉克的政策,并警告所谓的预防性战争可能具有“灾难性”的后果。
据香港文汇报引述路透社报道,卡特在奥斯陆接受诺贝尔和平奖的讲话中说:“强国采取预防性战争的原则可能树立了一个可引致灾难性后果的榜样。”
卡特指出,战争永远是邪恶的,虽然有时可能是必需的坏事。他强调“不应通过互相杀害来学习如何和平共处”。
卡特说:“我们必须记住,现今地球上有至少八个核武强国,其中三个正在国际关系紧张的地区威胁邻国。”
但卡特亦说,伊拉克必须“全面遵守(联合国)安理会的一致决定,废除所有大杀伤力武器,并准许检查员畅通无阻地进入各地点,以证实伊拉克遵守承诺”。
卡特亦呼吁国际社会接受联合国的领导,以寻求和平及缩窄贫富悬殊,并称战争永远是邪恶的。
卡特说,踏入新的千禧年,全球在许多方面变得更危险,恐怖主义和内战取代了二十世纪的冷战。他说:“必须以和平配合强大的国际联盟和共识来对付全球的挑战。这最好是透过联合国来进行,虽然它未必完美。”
Your Majesties, Members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen:
It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I accept this prize. I am grateful to my wife Rosalynn, to my colleagues at The Carter Center, and to many others who continue to seek an end to violence and suffering throughout the world. The scope and character of our Center's activities are perhaps unique, but in many other ways they are typical of the work being done by many hundreds of nongovernmental organizations that strive for human rights and peace.
Most Nobel laureates have carried out our work in safety, but there are others who have acted with great personal courage. None has provided more vivid reminders of the dangers of peacemaking than two of my friends, Anwar Sadat and Yitzhak Rabin, who gave their lives for the cause of peace in the Middle East.
Like these two heroes, my first chosen career was in the military, as a submarine officer. My shipmates and I realized that we had to be ready to fight if combat was forced upon us, and we were prepared to give our lives to defend our nation and its principles. At the same time, we always prayed fervently that our readiness would ensure that there would be no war.
Later, as president and as Commander-in-Chief of our armed forces, I was one of those who bore the sobering responsibility of maintaining global stability during the height of the Cold War, as the world's two superpowers confronted each other. Both sides understood that an unresolved political altercation or a serious misjudgment could lead to a nuclear holocaust. In Washington and in Moscow, we knew that we would have less than a half hour to respond after we learned that intercontinental missiles had been launched against us. There had to be a constant and delicate balancing of our great military strength with aggressive diplomacy, always seeking to build friendships with other nations, large and small, that shared a common cause.
In those days, the nuclear and conventional armaments of the United States and the Soviet Union were almost equal, but democracy ultimately prevailed because of commitments to freedom and human rights, not only by people in my country and those of our allies, but in the former Soviet empire as well. As president, I extended my public support and encouragement to Andrei Sakharov, who, although denied the right to attend the ceremony, was honored here for his personal commitments to these same ideals.
The world has changed greatly since I left the White House. Now there is only one superpower, with unprecedented military and economic strength. The coming budget for American armaments will be greater than those of the next fifteen nations combined, and there are troops from the United States in many countries throughout the world. Our gross national economy exceeds that of the three countries that follow us, and our nation's voice most often prevails as decisions are made concerning trade, humanitarian assistance, and the allocation of global wealth. This dominant status is unlikely to change in our lifetimes.
Great American power and responsibility are not unprecedented, and have been used with restraint and great benefit in the past. We have not assumed that super strength guarantees super wisdom, and we have consistently reached out to the international community to ensure that our own power and influence are tempered by the best common judgment.
Within our country, ultimate decisions are made through democratic means, which tend to moderate radical or ill-advised proposals. Constrained and inspired by historic constitutional principles, our nation has endeavored for more than two hundred years to follow the now almost universal ideals of freedom, human rights, and justice for all.
Our president, Woodrow Wilson, was honored here for promoting the League of Nations, whose two basic concepts were profoundly important: "collective security" and "self-determination." Now they are embedded in international law. Violations of these premises during the last half-century have been tragic failures, as was vividly demonstrated when the Soviet Union attempted to conquer Afghanistan and when Iraq invaded Kuwait.
After the second world war, American Secretary of State Cordell Hull received this prize for his role in founding the United Nations. His successor, General George C. Marshall, was recognized because of his efforts to help rebuild Europe, without excluding the vanquished nations of Italy and Germany. This was a historic example of respecting human rights at the international level.
Ladies and gentlemen:
Twelve years ago, President Mikhail Gorbachev received your recognition for his preeminent role in ending the Cold War that had lasted fifty years.
But instead of entering a millennium of peace, the world is now, in many ways, a more dangerous place. The greater ease of travel and communication has not been matched by equal understanding and mutual respect. There is a plethora of civil wars, unrestrained by rules of the Geneva Convention, within which an overwhelming portion of the casualties are unarmed civilians who have no ability to defend themselves. And recent appalling acts of terrorism have reminded us that no nations, even superpowers, are invulnerable.
It is clear that global challenges must be met with an emphasis on peace, in harmony with others, with strong alliances and international consensus. Imperfect as it may be, there is no doubt that this can best be done through the United Nations, which Ralph Bunche described here in this same forum as exhibiting a "fortunate flexibility" - not merely to preserve peace but also to make change, even radical change, without violence.
He went on to say: "To suggest that war can prevent war is a base play on words and a despicable form of warmongering. The objective of any who sincerely believe in peace clearly must be to exhaust every honorable recourse in the effort to save the peace. The world has had ample evidence that war begets only conditions that beget further war."
We must remember that today there are at least eight nuclear powers on earth, and three of them are threatening to their neighbors in areas of great international tension. For powerful countries to adopt a principle of preventive war may well set an example that can have catastrophic consequences.
If we accept the premise that the United Nations is the best avenue for the maintenance of peace, then the carefully considered decisions of the United Nations Security Council must be enforced. All too often, the alternative has proven to be uncontrollable violence and expanding spheres of hostility.
For more than half a century, following the founding of the State of Israel in 1948, the Middle East conflict has been a source of worldwide tension. At Camp David in 1978 and in Oslo in 1993, Israelis, Egyptians, and Palestinians have endorsed the only reasonable prescription for peace: United Nations Resolution 242. It condemns the acquisition of territory by force, calls for withdrawal of Israel from the occupied territories, and provides for Israelis to live securely and in harmony with their neighbors. There is no other mandate whose implementation could more profoundly improve international relationships.
Perhaps of more immediate concern is the necessity for Iraq to comply fully with the unanimous decision of the Security Council that it eliminate all weapons of mass destruction and permit unimpeded access by inspectors to confirm that this commitment has been honored. The world insists that this be done.
I thought often during my years in the White House of an admonition that we received in our small school in Plains, Georgia, from a beloved teacher, Miss Julia Coleman. She often said: "We must adjust to changing times and still hold to unchanging principles."
When I was a young boy, this same teacher also introduced me to Leo Tolstoy's novel, "War and Peace." She interpreted that powerful narrative as a reminder that the simple human attributes of goodness and truth can overcome great power. She also taught us that an individual is not swept along on a tide of inevitability but can influence even the greatest human events.
These premises have been proven by the lives of many heroes, some of whose names were little known outside their own regions until they became Nobel laureates: Albert John Lutuli, Norman Borlaug, Desmond Tutu, Elie Wiesel, Aung San Suu Kyi, Jody Williams, and even Albert Schweitzer and Mother Teresa. All of these and others have proven that even without government power - and often in opposition to it - individuals can enhance human rights and wage peace, actively and effectively.
The Nobel prize also profoundly magnified the inspiring global influence of Martin Luther King, Jr., the greatest leader that my native state has ever produced. On a personal note, it is unlikely that my political career beyond Georgia would have been possible without the changes brought about by the civil rights movement in the American south and throughout our nation.
On the steps of our memorial to Abraham Lincoln, Dr. King said: "I have a dream that on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood."
The scourge of racism has not been vanquished, either in the red hills of our state or around the world. And yet we see ever more frequent manifestations of his dream of racial healing. In a symbolic but very genuine way, at least involving two Georgians, it is coming true in Oslo today.
I am not here as a public official, but as a citizen of a troubled world who finds hope in a growing consensus that the generally accepted goals of society are peace, freedom, human rights, environmental quality, the alleviation of suffering, and the rule of law.
During the past decades, the international community, usually under the auspices of the United Nations, has struggled to negotiate global standards that can help us achieve these essential goals. They include: the abolition of land mines and chemical weapons; an end to the testing, proliferation, and further deployment of nuclear warheads; constraints on global warming; prohibition of the death penalty, at least for children; and an international criminal court to deter and to punish war crimes and genocide. Those agreements already adopted must be fully implemented, and others should be pursued aggressively.
We must also strive to correct the injustice of economic sanctions that seek to penalize abusive leaders but all too often inflict punishment on those who are already suffering from the abuse.
The unchanging principles of life predate modern times. I worship Jesus Christ, whom we Christians consider to be the Prince of Peace. As a Jew, he taught us to cross religious boundaries, in service and in love. He repeatedly reached out and embraced Roman conquerors, other Gentiles, and even the more despised Samaritans.
Despite theological differences, all great religions share common commitments that define our ideal secular relationships. I am convinced that Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, and others can embrace each other in a common effort to alleviate human suffering and to espouse peace.
But the present era is a challenging and disturbing time for those whose lives are shaped by religious faith based on kindness toward each other. We have been reminded that cruel and inhuman acts can be derived from distorted theological beliefs, as suicide bombers take the lives of innocent human beings, draped falsely in the cloak of God's will. With horrible brutality, neighbors have massacred neighbors in Europe, Asia, and Africa.
In order for us human beings to commit ourselves personally to the inhumanity of war, we find it necessary first to dehumanize our opponents, which is in itself a violation of the beliefs of all religions. Once we characterize our adversaries as beyond the scope of God's mercy and grace, their lives lose all value. We deny personal responsibility when we plant landmines and, days or years later, a stranger to us - often a child - is crippled or killed. From a great distance, we launch bombs or missiles with almost total impunity, and never want to know the number or identity of the victims.
At the beginning of this new millennium I was asked to discuss, here in Oslo, the greatest challenge that the world faces. Among all the possible choices, I decided that the most serious and universal problem is the growing chasm between the richest and poorest people on earth. Citizens of the ten wealthiest countries are now seventy-five times richer than those who live in the ten poorest ones, and the separation is increasing every year, not only between nations but also within them. The results of this disparity are root causes of most of the world's unresolved problems, including starvation, illiteracy, environmental degradation, violent conflict, and unnecessary illnesses that range from Guinea worm to HIV/AIDS.
Most work of The Carter Center is in remote villages in the poorest nations of Africa, and there I have witnessed the capacity of destitute people to persevere under heartbreaking conditions. I have come to admire their judgment and wisdom, their courage and faith, and their awesome accomplishments when given a chance to use their innate abilities.
But tragically, in the industrialized world there is a terrible absence of understanding or concern about those who are enduring lives of despair and hopelessness. We have not yet made the commitment to share with others an appreciable part of our excessive wealth. This is a potentially rewarding burden that we should all be willing to assume.
Ladies and gentlemen:
War may sometimes be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary, it is always an evil, never a good. We will not learn how to live together in peace by killing each other's children.
The bond of our common humanity is stronger than the divisiveness of our fears and prejudices. God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to alleviate suffering. We can choose to work together for peace. We can make these changes - and we must.
Thank you.
奥巴马竞选获胜演讲稿(中英文对照版)
Hello, Chicago!
芝加哥,你好!
If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.
如果有人怀疑美国是个一切皆有可能的地方,怀疑美国奠基者的梦想在我们这个时代依然燃烧,怀疑我们民主的力量,那么今晚这些疑问都有了答案。
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.
学校和教堂门外的长龙便是答案。排队的人数之多,在美国历史上前所未有。为了投票,他们排队长达三、四个小时。许多人一生中第一次投票,因为他们认为这一次大选结果必须不同以往,而他们手中的一票可能决定胜负。
It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled — Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of red states and blue states; we are, and always will be, the United States of America.
无论年龄,无论贫富,无论民主党人或共和党人,无论黑人、白人,无论拉美裔、亚裔、印地安人, 无论同性恋、异性恋,无论残障人、健全人,所有的人,他们向全世界喊出了同一个声音:我们并不隶属 “红州”与 “蓝州”的对立阵营,我们属于美利坚合众国,现在如此,永远如此!
It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.
长久以来,很多人说:我们对自己的能量应该冷漠,应该恐惧,应该怀疑。但是,历史之轮如今已在我们手中,我们又一次将历史之轮转往更美好的未来。
It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.
漫漫征程,今宵终于来临。特殊的一天,特殊的一次大选,特殊的决定性时刻,美国迎来了变革。
I just received a very gracious call from Sen. McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Gov. Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.
刚才,麦凯恩参议员很有风度地给我打了个电话。在这次竞选中,他的努力持久而艰巨。为了这个他挚爱的国家,他的努力更持久、更艰巨。他为美国的奉献超出绝大多数人的想象。他是一位勇敢无私的领袖,有了他的奉献,我们的生活才更美好。我对他和佩林州长的成绩表示祝贺。同时,我也期待着与他们共同努力,再续美国辉煌。
I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the vice-president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.
我要感谢我的竞选搭档——当选副总统乔?拜登。为了与他一起在斯克兰顿市街头长大、一起坐火车返回特拉华州的人们,拜登全心全意地竟选,他代表了这些普通人的声音。
I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last 16 years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation's next first lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House. And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.
我要感谢下一位第一夫人米歇尔?奥巴马。她是我家的中流砥柱,是我生命中的最爱。没有她在过去16年来的坚定支持,今晚我就不可能站在这里。我要感谢两个女儿萨沙和玛丽娅,我太爱你们两个了,你们将得到一条新的小狗,它将与我们一起入住白宫。我还要感谢已去世的外婆,我知道此刻她正在天上注视着我。她与我的家人一起造就了今天的我。今夜我思念他们,他们对我的恩情比山高、比海深。
To my campaign manager, David Plouffe; my chief strategist, David Axelrod; and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics — you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.
我要感谢我的竞选经理大卫?普鲁夫,感谢首席策划师大卫?阿克塞罗德以及整个竞选团队,他们是政治史上最优秀的竞选团队。你们成就了今夜,我永远感谢你们为今夜所付出的一切。
But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to — it belongs to you.
但最重要的是,我将永远不会忘记这场胜利真正属于谁---是你们!
I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington — it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.
我从来不是最有希望的候选人。起初,我们的资金不多,赞助人也不多。我们的竞选并非始于华盛顿的华丽大厅,而是起于德莫奈地区某家的后院、康科德地区的某家客厅、查尔斯顿地区的某家前廊。
It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give $5 and $10 and $20 to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this earth. This is your victory.
劳动大众从自己的微薄积蓄中掏出5美元、10美元、20美元,拿来捐助我们的事业。年轻人证明了他们绝非所谓“冷漠的一代”。他们远离家乡和亲人,拿着微薄的报酬,起早摸黑地助选。上了年纪的人也顶着严寒酷暑,敲开陌生人的家门助选。无数美国人自愿组织起来,充当自愿者。正是这些人壮大了我们的声势。他们的行动证明了在两百多年以后,民有、民治、民享的政府并未从地球上消失。这是你们的胜利。
I know you didn't do this just to win an election, and I know you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime — two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.
你们这样做,并不只是为了赢得一场大选,更不是为了我个人。你们这样做,是因为你们清楚未来的任务有多么艰巨。今晚我们在欢庆,明天我们就将面对一生之中最为严峻的挑战--两场战争、一个充满危险的星球,还有百年一遇的金融危机。今晚我们在这里庆祝,但我们知道在伊拉克的沙漠里,在阿富汗的群山中,许许多多勇敢的美国人醒来后就将为了我们而面临生命危险。许许多多的父母会在孩子熟睡后仍难以入眠,他们正在为月供、医药费,孩子今后的大学费用而发愁。我们需要开发新能源,创造就业机会,建造新学校,迎接挑战和威胁,并修复与盟国的关系。
The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year, or even one term, but America — I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you: We as a people will get there.
前方道路还很漫长,任务艰巨。一年之内,甚至一届总统任期之内,我们可能都无法完成这些任务。但我从未像今晚这样对美国满怀希望,我相信我们会实现这个目标。我向你们承诺--我们美利坚民族将实现这一目标!
There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for 221 years — block by block, brick by brick, callused hand by callused hand.
我们会遇到挫折,会出师不利,会有许多人不认同我的某一项决定或政策。政府并不能解决所有问题,但我会向你们坦陈我们所面临的挑战。我会聆听你们的意见,尤其是在我们意见相左之时。最重要的是,我会让你们一起重建这个国家。用自己的双手,从一砖一瓦做起。这是美国立国221年以来的前进方式,也是惟一的方式。
What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek — it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.
21个月前那个隆冬所开始的一切,绝不应在这一个秋夜结束。我们所寻求的变革并不只是赢得大选,这只是给变革提供了一个机会。假如我们照老路子办事,就没有变革;没有你们,就没有变革。
So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers. In this country, we rise or fall as one nation — as one people.
让我们重新发扬爱国精神,树立崭新的服务意识、责任感,每个人下定决心,一起努力工作,彼此关爱;让我们牢记这场金融危机带来的教训:不能允许商业街挣扎的同时却让华尔街繁荣。在这个国家,我们作为同一个民族,同生死共存亡。
Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House — a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress.
党派之争、琐碎幼稚,长期以来这些东西荼毒了我们的政坛。让我们牢记,当来自伊利诺伊州的一位先生首次将共和党大旗扛进白宫时,伴随着他的是自强自立、个人自由、国家统一的共和党建党理念。这也是我们所有人都珍视的理念。虽然民主党今晚大胜,但我们态度谦卑,并决心弥合阻碍我们进步的分歧。
As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends... Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection." And, to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your president, too.
当年,林肯面对的是一个远比目前更为分裂的国家。他说:“我们不是敌人,而是朋友……虽然激情可能不再,但是我们的感情纽带不会割断。”对于那些现在并不支持我的美国人,我想说,虽然我没有赢得你们的选票,但我听到了你们的声音,我需要你们的帮助,我也将是你们的总统。
And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world — our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight, we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.
对于关注今夜结果的国际人士,不管他们是在国会、皇宫关注,还是在荒僻地带收听电台,我们的态度是:我们美国人的经历各有不同,但我们的命运相关,新的美国领袖诞生了。对于想毁灭这个世界的人们,我们必将击败你们。对于追求和平和安全的人们,我们将支持你们。对于怀疑美国这盏灯塔是否依然明亮的人们,今天晚上我们已再次证明:美国的真正力量来源并非军事威力或财富规模,而是我们理想的恒久力量:民主、自由、机会和不屈的希望。
For that is the true genius of America — that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.
美国能够变革,这才是美国真正的精髓。我们的联邦会不断完善。我们已经取得的成就,将为我们将来能够并且必须取得的成就增添希望。
This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election, except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.
这次大选创造了多项“第一”,诞生了很多将流芳后世的故事,但今晚令我最为难忘的却是一位在亚特兰大投票的妇女:安妮?库波尔。她和无数排队等候投票的选民没有什么差别,唯一的不同是她高龄106岁。
She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons — because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.
在她出生的那个时代,黑奴制刚刚废除。那时路上没有汽车,天上没有飞机。当时像她这样的人由于两个原因不能投票--一第一因为她是女性,第二个原因是她的肤色。
And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America — the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes, we can.
今天晚上,我想到了安妮在美国过去一百年间的种种经历:心痛和希望,挣扎和进步,那些我们被告知我们办不到的年代,以及我们现在这个年代。现在,我们坚信美国式信念──是的,我们能!
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes, we can.
在那个年代,妇女的声音被压制,她们的希望被剥夺。但安妮活到了今天,看到妇女们站起来了,可以大声发表意见了,有选举权了。是的,我们能。
When there was despair in the Dust Bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes, we can.
安妮经历了上世纪三十年代的大萧条。农田荒芜,绝望笼罩美国大地。她看到了美国以新政、新的就业机会以及崭新的共同追求战胜了恐慌。是的,我们能。
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes, we can.
二战时期,炸弹袭击我们的海港,全世界受到独裁专制威胁,安妮见证了一代美国人的英雄本色,他们捍卫了民主。是的,我们能。
She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes, we can.
安妮经历了蒙哥马利公交车事件、伯明翰黑人暴动事件、塞尔马血醒周末事件。来自亚特兰大的一位牧师告诉人们:我们终将胜利。是的,我们能。
A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes, we can.
人类登上了月球、柏林墙倒下了,科学和想像把世界连成了一块。今年,在这次选举中,安妮的手指轻触电子屏幕,投下自己的一票。她在美国生活了106年,其间有最美好的时光,也有最黑暗的时刻,她知道美国能够变革。是的,我们能。
America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves: If our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?
美利坚,我们已经一路走来,我们已经看到了那么多变化,但我们仍有很多事情要做。今夜,让我们问自己这样一个问题:假如我们的孩子能够活到下一个世纪,假如我的女儿们有幸与安妮一样长寿,她们将会看到怎样的改变?我们又取得了怎样的进步?
This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time — to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.
现在,我们获得了回答这个问题的机会。这是我们的时刻,我们的时代。让我们的人民重新就业,为我们的孩子打开机会的大门;恢复繁荣,促进和平;让美国梦重放光芒,再证这一根本性真理,那就是:团结一致,众志成城;一息尚存,希望就在;倘若有人嘲讽和怀疑,说我们不能,我们就以这一永恒信条回应,因为它凝聚了整个民族的精神——是的,我们能!
Thank you, God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America.
谢谢大家!愿上帝保佑你们,保佑美利坚合众国。