The right to vote is one of the most fundamental rights of any democracy. Yet, for too long, too many of our fellow citizens were denied that right simply because of the color of their skin.
Fifty years ago this week, President Lyndon Johnson signed a law to change that. The Voting Rights Act broke down legal barriers that stood between millions of African Americans and their constitutional right to cast ballot(投票). It was, and still is, one of the greatest victories in our country’s struggle for civil rights. But it didn’t happen overnight. Countless men and women marched and organized, sat in and stood up, for our most basic rights. For this, they were called agitators(挑拨者) and un-American; they were jailed and beaten. Some were even killed. But in the end, they reaffirmed (重申)the idea at the very heart of America: that people who love this country can change it.
Our country is a better place because of all those heroes did for us. But as one of those heroes, Congressman John Lewis, reminded us in Selma this past March, “There’s still work to be done.” Fifty years after the Voting Rights Act, there are still too many barriers to vote, and too many people trying to erect（建立） new ones. We’ve seen laws that roll back early voting, force people to jump through hoops to cast a ballot or lead to legitimate (合法的) voters being improperly purged from the rolls. Over the years, we have seen provisions (规定) specifically designed to make it harder for some of our fellow citizens to vote. In a democracy like ours, with a history like ours, that’s a disgrace. That’s why, as we celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, I’m calling on Congress to pass new legislation to make sure every American has equal access to the polls.
It’s why I support the organizers getting folks registered in their communities. And it’s why, no matter what party you support, my message to every American is simple: get out there and vote—not just every four years, but every chance you get, because your elected officials will only heed(留心) your voice if you make your voice heard. The promise that all of us are created equal is written into our founding documents but it’s up to us to make that promise real. Together, let’s do what Americans have always done: Let’s keep marching forward, keep perfecting our union, and keep building a better country for our kids.
[From Obama Weekly Address Aug 8th , 2015]
1.Many Americans were denied the right to vote simply because _____.
A. they were unwilling to go out and vote
B. they were agitators and un-American
C. too many people tried to erect new barriers
D. the color of their skin was different
2.What message does President Barack Obama want to convey in this speech
A. The President underlined that all people are created equal.
B. The President celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act.
C. The President reaffirmed the commitment to protecting the right to vote.
D. The President called on everyone to seize every chance to elect officials.
完形填空
Learning a second language fuels children’s intelligence and makes their job prospects brighter. ______the fact is, in U.S.A, as in many other English speaking countries, speakers of two or more languages are in the ______ . Eighty-four percent of US people are monolingual (speakers of only one language). This leaves a small number who ______ to speak two or more languages.
No matter how proud people are of their cultural roots, to speak anything ______ English is a marker of differencehere. That’s why fourteen-year-old Umar is______ when people comment on the fact that he is able to speak Arabic.
Umar’s mother points out: ―In U.S.A, it’s not ______ for kids to be bilingual. But, if you speak another language to your children in U.S.A, it is thought that you are not helping them to ______ society.
But in fact, the general ______ among experts is that learning a second language is good for children. Experts believe that bilinguals – people who speak ______ languages – have a clear learning advantage ______ their monolingual schoolmates. This ______on how much of each language they can speak, not on which language is used, ______ they are learning Arabic, French, Chinese or any other language.
Vinss Millon, a professor of Foreign Language Training, says: ―A lot of studies have ______ that children who speak more than one language sometimes learn one language more______, but in the end they do as well as their monolingual schoolmates, and often better, in other subjects.
The view is that there is a(n) ______ from the effort of learning another language. A few other ______ agree that “Bilinguals tend to use language better as a whole. They also ______ greater creativity and problem-solving ability, and
they learn further languages more easily”.
With all of the benefits, why do we not show more ______ for learning other languages? Parents and teachers ______in bilingual education say it is pressure from friends at school, general ______ to other languages in English-speaking countries, and problems in the school system that are to blame.
1.A. And B. So C. But D. Thus
2.A. minimum B. maximum C. minority D. majority
3.A. claim B. pretend C. decide D. plan
4.A. more than B. less than C. rather than D. other than
5.A. excited B. embarrassed C. disappointed D. appreciated
6.A. common B. unusual C. unique D. general
7.A. fit in B. build up C. contribute to D. figure out
8.A. distinction B. commission C. announcement D. agreement
9.A. one B. two C. three D. more
10.A. beneath B. beyond C. over D. of
11.A. determines B. focuses C. comments D. depends
12.A. if B. whether C. when D. because
13.A. rejected B. released C. revealed D. reminded
14.A. slowly B. rapidly C. easily D. efficiently
15.A. outcome B. improvement C. advantage D. tendency
16.A. parents B. learners C. schoolmates D. professors
17.A. display B. produce C. inspire D. discover
18.A. concern B. respect C. enthusiasm D. intelligence
19.A. involved B. impressed C. competing D. replacing
20.A. opinions B. obstacles C. senses D. attitudes
---- I was reading A Dream of Red Mansions by Cao Xueqin yesterday, but I couldn’t understand it.
---- ______. It is classical literature, so take your time to enjoy it.
A. Don’t fly off the handle
B. You got me there
C. Nothing is impossible to a willing heart
D. More haste, less speed
News of the world was gone, shut down after ______ in the biggest newspaper scandal ever to hit Britain.
A. catching B. caught
C. being caught D. having caught
----Anything special about this device?
----Well, it can ______ between the cancerous and the normal cells under certain conditions.
A. conclude B. exclude C. discriminate D. undergo
It is reported that China will not buy the Euro debt until some thorough research ______.
A. has been done B. will have been done
C. will be done D. had been done
