高中英语 voa常速听力2012年09月合辑文本order-to-free-slaves-beginning-of-america-really-becoming-america素材.docVIP

VOA常速英语听力2012年09月合辑（文本）：Order-to-Free-Slaves-Beginning-of-America-Really-Becoming-America WASHINGTON — It was 150 years ago that Union and Confederate troops squared off at Antietam Creek, Maryland, - a major Civil War victory for the Union that some historians say changed the course of American history. Thats because five days later President Abraham Lincoln issued the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which eventually brought an end to slavery in the United States. Hundreds gathered to reflect on the nations past at a remembrance observance at the Washington memorial that bears the 16th president抯 name. It was a day of remembrance for those gathered at the footsteps of the Lincoln Memorial to commemorate 150 years since the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Congressman John Lewis, the son of farmers and whose ancestors were slaves, is a winner of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. For him, this anniversary has significance beyond words. It tends to dramatize that as of 150 years that a son or grandson or a great grandson of a slave can grow up and be honored by presidents of the U.S., including an African-American president, and [be] serving in Congress. It says something about the distance weve come and a progress weve made as a people, Lewis said. Ed Ayers, a history professor at the University of Richmond, says the best way to explain the history of slavery and the U.S. Civil War is to get everyone in the story. The fact is that it took everybody to make this happen. If you dont have a leader such as Lincoln whos willing to take all these chances, it doesnt happen. If you dont have an army to carry it through, it doesnt happen. If you dont have the enslaved people showing or longing their desperation and determination, it doesnt happen, Ayers said. We have a live audience today from schools, colleges and universities, Ayers said. Ayers spoke in a discussion streamed live to students around the country, like those gathered at George Mason University n