英语学习频道：美国19岁优秀大学男生Zach Wahls为同性恋婚姻辩护演讲

第一篇：英语学习频道：美国19岁优秀大学男生Zach Wahls为同性恋婚姻辩护演讲

Good evening Mr.Chairman.晚上好，主席先生。My name is Zach Wahls.I'm a sixth-generation Iowan and an engineering student at the University of Iowa and I was raised by two women.我叫 Zach Wahls。我是第六代爱荷华人，也是爱荷华大学电机系学生，我是由两位女性抚养长大的。My biological mom, Terry, told her grandparents that she was pregnant, that the artificial insemination had worked, and they wouldn't even acknowledge it.当我的生理母亲泰瑞告诉她祖父母她怀孕了、人工受孕成功了，他们根本不想承认有过这件事。It wasn't until I was born and they succumbed to my infantile cuteness that they broke down and told her that they were thrilled to have another grandson.直到我出生以后，因为小婴儿如此可爱，他们总算放下心防告诉她，他们很高兴家里多了一个孙子。Unfortunately, neither of them lived to see her marry her partner Jackie of 15 years when they wed in 2009.遗憾的是，他们二位都没能活到亲眼见到她与她在一起十五年的伴侣贾琪结婚。她们二位在2009 年结婚。（按：Iowa当时已通过民事结合法，现在是要投票废掉）My younger sister and only sibling was born in 1994.We actually have the same anonymous donor so we're full siblings, which is really cool for me.我唯一的妹妹在1994年出生。我们两人的生理父亲是同一位匿名捐精者，因此我们的血缘是完全相同的，对我来说是件很酷的事。Um, I guess the point is our family really isn't so different from any other Iowa family.You know, when I'm home we go to church together, we eat dinner, we go on vacations.Ah, but, you know, we have our hard times too, we get in fights...you know.重点是，我们家和别的爱荷华家庭没有任何不同。我们一起上教堂，一起吃晚餐，一起出外渡假，当然我们也会争吵。Actually my mom, Terry was diagnoses with multiple sclerosis in 2000.It is a devastating disease that put her in a wheelchair.So we've had our struggles.2000年我妈妈泰瑞被诊断出多发性硬化症，这种重症让她现在必须坐轮椅，大家可以看到我们也有困难的时候。But, you know, we're Iowans.We don't expect anyone to solve our problems for us.We'll fight our own battles.We just hope for equal and fair treatment from our government.然而，我们是爱荷华人，我们并不期待别人帮我们解决我们的问题，我们自己扛起枪打自己的仗。我们只希望政府给予公平和平等的对待。Being a student at the University of Iowa, the topic of same sex marriage comes up quite frequently in classroom discussions...you know.The question always comes down to, well,“Can gays even raise kids?”

身为爱荷华大学的学生，同性婚姻的话题在课堂讨论上常常被提起。话题往往带到「同性伴侣能够抚养小孩吗？」 In question, you know, the conversation gets quiet for a moment because most people don't really have any answer.大家往往到了这部份的讨论就沉默下来，因为大家都没有答案。And then I raise my hand and say, “Actually, I was raised by a gay couple, and I'm doing pretty well.”

这时我都会举手告诉大家我的双亲是一对同性伴侣，我想我成长得还不错。I scored in the 99th percentile on the A.C.T.I'm actually an Eagle Scout.I own and operate my own small business.If I was your son, Mr.Chairman, I believe I'd make you very proud.我是 ACT(美国大学入学考试)前1%的学生，也得到童子军的最高级荣誉(Eagle Scout)，我自己创了一个小小的公司，如果我是您的儿子，主席，我想您会以我为荣。I'm not really so different from any of your children.My family really isn't so different from yours.After all, your family doesn't derive its sense of worth from being told by the state: “You're married.congratulations.” No.我和这里任何一位听众的孩子没有不同，我的家庭和任何家庭也没有很大的不同。但毕竟，各位的家庭不会因为爱荷华政府给予各位结婚的权利而感到一种存在的价值：“哇，恭喜了，妳们终于能结婚了！”不。The sense of family comes from the commitment we make to each other.To work through the hard times so we can enjoy the good ones.It comes from the love that binds us.That's what makes a family.「家庭」这个观念来自于我们对彼此承诺我们能够一起渡过难关，进而享受因为对彼此的爱所带来的幸福。这才是家庭的真谛！So what you're voting here isn't to change us.It's not to change our families, it's to change how the law views us;how the law treats us.因此，各位在这里投票的结果并不会改变我们，并不会改变我们的家庭，只会改变法律如何看待我们，如何对待我们。You are voting for the first time in the history of our state to codify discrimination into our constitution, a constitution that but for the proposed amendment, is the least amended constitution in the United States of America.我们在这里投下爱荷华有史以来第一次容许本州岛法律将「歧视」白纸黑字写入宪法里。我们的宪法，在美国历史上很常被提案却是最少被更改的一部。You are telling Iowans that some among you are second class citizens who do not have the right to marry the person you love.你们投的票等于是告诉州民，在你们当中有些人是次等公民，因此没有权利和他们所爱的人结婚。So will this vote affect my family? Will it affect yours?

你们的投票结果会影响我的家庭吗？会影响你们的吗？ In the next two hours I'm sure we're going to hear plenty of testimony about how damaging having gay parents is on kids.在接下来的两个小时，我们还会听到更多「同志养育小孩大不幸」的言论，But in my 19 years, not once have I ever been confronted by an individual who realized independently that I was raised by a gay couple.但在我19年的人生里，我从来没有一次被人质疑我是同性伴侣养大的小孩。And you know why? Because the sexual orientation of my parents has had zero effect on the content of my character.Thank you very much.你知道为什么吗？因为我双亲的性倾向对我的人格健全发展完全没有影响。非常感谢。