晨读英语美文 If there is anyone out there who still doubts that

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that

[00:06.78]America is a place where all things are possible,

[00:11.95]who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time,

[00:18.57]who still questions the power of our democracy,

[00:22.81]tonight is your answer.

[00:31.18]It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches

[00:36.94]in numbers this nation has never seen,

[00:40.03]by people who waited three hours and four hours,

[00:43.86]many for the first time in their lives,

[00:47.21]because they believed that this time must be different,

[00:51.89]that their voices could be that difference.

[00:56.27]It's the answer spoken by young and old,rich and poor,

[01:00.94]Democrat and Republican,black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American,

[01:07.39]gay, straight, disabled and not disabled-Americans who sent a message

[01:13.52]to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or

[01:18.78]a collection of red states and blue states.

[01:22.02]We are, and always will be,the United States of America.

[01:35.77]It's the answer that led those who've been told for so long

[01:42.59]by so many to be cynical and fearful and doubtful about what we can achieve

[01:49.05]to put their hands on the arc of history and

[01:52.56]bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

[01:57.41]It's been a long time coming,

[01:59.51]but tonight,

[02:01.17]because of what we did on this date in this election

[02:05.55]at this defining moment change has come to America.

[02:18.43]This election had many firsts and many stories that

[02:21.37]will be told for generations.

[02:23.04]But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman

[02:25.71]who cast her ballot in Atlanta.

[02:29.13]She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to

[02:32.00]make their voice heard in this election except for one thing:

[02:35.71]Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

[02:41.30]When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land,

[02:46.23]she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal,

[02:49.46]new jobs and a new sense of common purpose.

[02:53.10]Yes we can.

[02:55.78]When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world,

[03:00.51]she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved.

[03:05.78]Yes we can.

[03:10.50]She was there for the buses in Montgomery,

[03:12.16]the hoses in Birmingham,

[03:13.31]a bridge in Selma,

[03:14.62]and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that We Shall Overcome. Yes we can.

[03:22.66]A man touched down on the moon,

[03:25.49]a wall came down in Berlin,

[03:28.53]a world was connected by our own science and imagination.

[03:33.01]And this year,

[03:34.31]in this election,

[03:36.05]she touched her finger to a screen,

[03:38.76]and cast her vote,

[03:40.68]because after 106 years in America,

[03:44.09]through the best of times and the darkest of hours,

[03:46.96]she knows how America can change.

[03:50.51]Yes we can.

[03:53.10]America, we have come so far.

[03:55.91]We have seen so much.

[03:58.59]But there is so much more to do.

[04:00.95]So tonight,

[04:02.13]let us ask ourselves if our children should live to see the next century;

[04:08.81]if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper,

[04:13.90]what change will they see?

[04:16.48]What progress will we have made?

[04:20.02]This is our chance to answer that call.

[04:23.53]This is our moment.

[04:25.30]This is our time to put our people back to work and

[04:29.79]open doors of opportunity for our kids;

[04:31.78]to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace;

[04:35.14]to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth

[04:39.36]that out of many,

[04:40.43]we are one; that while we breathe,

[04:43.08]we hope,

[04:43.92]and where we are met with cynicism,and doubt,

[04:46.88]and those who tell us that we can't,

[04:49.64]we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

[04:55.57]Yes We Can.

[04:56.64]Thank you, God bless you,

[04:59.01]and may God Bless the United States of America.