The fight for the right to vote in the United States - Nicki Beaman Griffin

美国全民普选投票权斗争——尼基·比曼格·里芬

翻译人员: Wenbo Li 校对人员: Peipei Xiang

When the next general election rolls around,

下次美国总统大选的时候，

who will be eligible to show up at the polls

谁有资格投票选举

and vote for the President of the United States?

美国总统呢？

It's really pretty simple.

其实很简单。

If you are at least 18 years old,

如果你年满18岁，

a citizen of the U.S.,

拥有美国国籍，

and a resident of a state,

并且是某一个州的居民，

you can vote,

你就可以在大选的时候投票啦，

assuming, that is, you are not a felon.

除非……你被判了重刑。

Seems about right.

基本上就是这样。

After all, the United States prides itself

毕竟美国最引以为豪的

on being a democracy,

就是有一个民主体制，

or a government in which the ultimate authority

换句话说就是最终权力

lies with the citizens of the nation.

在人民手里的政府。

But it was not always this way.

但是美国并不是一开始就是这样的。

In 1789, George Washington won

在1789年，乔治·华盛顿以

the electoral college with 100% of the vote,

全票当选美国总统，

but whose vote was it?

但是那些票是谁投的？

Probably not yours.

很可能不是你我的票。

Only 6% of the entire United States population

当时只有6%的美国人口

was allowed to vote at all.

可以投票。

Voting was a right

that only white, male property owners

在当时只有

有土地的白人男性

were allowed to exercise.

才能行使投票权。

By the 1820s and 1830s,

到了1820年和1830年左右，

the American population was booming

美国人口从美国东部海岸

from the east coast into the western frontier.

向西部激增。

Frontier farmers were resilient,

西部的农民们都很贫穷，

self-reliant,

他们自给自足，

and mostly ineligible to vote

而且绝大多数都无权投票

because they did not own land.

因为他们没有自己的土地。

As these new areas of the nation became states,

随着这些新开垦地区升格为州以后，

they typically left out

才基本废除了

the property requirement for voting.

只有拥有土地才能投票的特权。

Leaders such as Andrew Jackson,

一些领袖们，包括安德鲁·杰克逊

the United State's first common man President,

美国第一个平民总统，

promoted what he called universal suffrage.

提倡“全民普选”制度。

Of course, by universal suffrage,

当然杰克逊总统所指的

Jackson really meant universal white, male suffrage.

“全民普选”其实是指全部的白人男性来参加大选。

All he emphasized was getting rid

他所强调的只不过是

of the property requirement for voting,

废除只有拥有土地才能投票的规定，

not expanding the vote beyond white men.

并没有把投票权拓展给白人男性以外的人。

By the 1850s, about 55% of the adult population

到1850年左右，大约有55%的成年人

was eligible to vote in the U.S.,

可以在美国大选投票。

much better than 6%,

比以往的6%大大提高，

but far from everybody.

但离真正的全民普选还差得很远。

Then, in 1861,

接着1861年，

the American Civil War began

南北战争

largely over the issue of slavery

由于对废除奴隶制问题以及

and states' rights in the United States.

州权问题的不同主张而打响。

When it was all over,

当战争打完的时候，

the U.S. ratified the 15th Amendment,

美国颁布了第十五修正案，

which promised that a person's right to vote

修正案明确了一个人的投票权利

could not be denied

不能因为

based on race,

种族、

color,

肤色

or previous condition as a slave.

或者曾经为奴隶而被剥夺。

This meant that black men,

这代表了重新

newly affirmed as citizens of the U.S.,

获得美国公民身份的黑人们

would now be allowed to vote.

现在可以有投票权了。

Of course, laws are far from reality.

当然，现实和法律还是差的很远的。

Despite the promise of the 15th Amendment,

尽管有15号修正案的存在，

intimidation kept African-Americans

各种威胁还是使得非裔美国人

from exercising their voting rights.

难以行使他们的投票权。

States passed laws that limited

各州政府通过了

the rights of African-Americans to vote,

限制非裔美国人投票的法案，

including things like literacy tests,

包括英文水平测试，

which were rigged

这些测试已被事先操纵

so that not even literate African-Americans

就连识字的非裔美国人

were allowed to pass,

也不能通过，

and poll taxes.

还要收取’投票税‘。

So, despite the 15th Amendment,

所以，虽然有15号修正案，

by 1892, only about 6% of black men

但是1892大选期间，仅有约6%的

in Mississippi were registered to vote.

在密西西比居住的黑人参与了投票。

By 1960, it was only 1%.

到1960年，这个数字只有1%

And, of course, women were still totally out

当然，女性还是被完全排除在外

of the national voting picture.

无法投票。

It wasn't until 1920

直到1920年，

that the women's suffrage movement

长达30年的妇女普选权力运动

won their 30-year battle,

才取得胜利，

and the 19th Amendment finally gave women the vote,

在19号修正案上终于给予了女性投票权，

well, white women.

准确来说，白人女性。

The restrictions on African-Americans,

对于非裔美国人

including African-American women,

以及非裔女性的投票限制

remained.

依然存在。

After World War II,

在第二次世界大战之后

many Americans began to question

很多美国人开始反思

the state of U.S. democracy.

美国的民主体系。

How could a nation that fought

一个向世界宣传

for freedom and human rights abroad

民主及自由的国家，

come home and deny suffrage based on race?

为什么连自己国内的大选都不能做到种族平等？

The modern civil rights movement

从1940开始，那些有反思意识的人

began in the 1940s with those questions in mind.

发起了关于美国国内人权的长期斗争。

After years of sacrifice,

经过了多年的牺牲，

bloodshed,

and pain,

流血

和痛苦，

the United States passed

美国终于通过了

the Voting Rights Act of 1965,

《1965年选举法案》，

finally eliminating restrictions

这标志着包括英文水平测试在内的

such as literacy tests

一系列限制被废除了，

and protecting the voting rights

并且捍卫了15号修正案里

promised under the 15th Amendment to the Constitution.

关于大选投票的规定。

Now, any citizen over the age of 21 could vote.

这之后，只要是年满21岁的公民就可以投票。

All seemed well

听上去很不错

until the United States went to war.

直到美国参加了越南战争。

When the Vietnam War called up all men

越南战争号召

age 18 and over for the draft,

所有年满18周岁的男性都去参军，

many wondered whether it was fair

很多人质疑

to send men who couldn't vote to war.

将一些连选举权对没有的人送到战场这公平吗？

In 1971, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution

1971年，补充宪法的第26号修正案规定

made all citizens 18 and older

所有年满18岁的公民

eligible to vote,

都有资格投票，

the last major expansion of voting rights

这是美国对投票权的

in the United States.

最后一次大的修改。

Today, the pool of eligible voters in the U.S.

今天，可以参加大选投票的人

is far broader and more inclusive

是美国有史以来，人数最多

than ever before in U.S. history.

包含范围最广的。

But, of course, it's not perfect.

但是，当然，它依然还不完美。

There are still active efforts

仍有人处心积虑地

to suppress some groups from voting,

打压别人应得的投票权，

and only about 60% of those who can vote do.

可以投票的人里面也只有60%的人会投票。

Now that you know all the hard work

现在你知道了你的投票权

that went into securing the right to vote,

背后的来之不易。

what do you think?

你怎么想？

Do enough citizens have the right to vote now?

你认为现在能投票的人够多吗？

And among those who can vote,

在可以投票的人里面，

why don't more of them do it?

为何还是有人放弃呢？