公众人物毕业演讲(MP3+字幕)第82期:米歇尔奥巴马迪拉德大学(8)

When an arsonist set fire to the school's library in 1877, they built a new one

1877年学校图书馆被人纵火后 人们又新建了一座

When those two original schools ran into financial troubles years later

数年后 最初这两所学校碰到财政困难时

they started making plans to build an even bigger and better university

人们又开始计划建立一所更大更好的大学

And in the 1930s, when white folks complained

1930年代 有些白人开始抱怨

that this new school would mean too many black students on their buses

这所新学校会让太多黑人学生坐到他们的公汽上

the folks at the school got the city to add a bus line just for their students

学校这些人又找市政府专门开辟了一条黑人学生专线

because nothing

没有任何事情

nothing was going to stop them from achieving the vision of those early founders

没有任何事情能够阻止他们实现早期建校者的远大理想

And finally, in May of 1934

最终在1934年5月

they broke ground for this school, Dillard University

这所学校 迪拉德大学 得以成立

a university that would go on to produce

这所大学注定会为我们国家

some of the leading thinkers and achievers in our country

培养出不少的优秀思想者和成功者

And the day the cornerstone was laid for your library

在学校图书馆奠基的那一天

the President of Howard University spoke these words He said

霍华德大学校长说了如下这些话

There lies in this Southland today

在这片南国的土地下静静地躺着

buried in unmarked grave many a black genius

很多名字都不知道的优秀黑人

who would have blessed this city and this section of our country

他们祝福着这座城市和这片土地

if only his parents could have had before them

他们是多么希望自己的前人

the Dillard University you are now building

能够建立起这样一所迪拉德大学

And in the years since then, through segregation and depression

从那时起 虽然有过种族隔离和萧条

through threats of violence and the floodwaters of a devastating storm

有过暴力和暴风雨引发的洪水

students like you have come here to study and to learn

但像你们这样大无畏的学生 聚在这里学习

and to carry forward those hopes and dreams

传承着前人的希望和梦想

And today, I stand before a sea of young geniuses

今天 我站在一片年轻才俊的海洋之前