奥巴马在哥伦比亚大学2012年毕业典礼上的演讲稿

Thank you so much. (Applause.) Thank you. Please, please have a seat. Thank you.
(Applause.)
非常感谢大家。(掌声)谢谢大家，请入座。谢谢大家。(掌声)
Thank you, President Spar, trustees, President Bollinger. Hello, Class of 2012!
(Applause.) Congratulations on reaching this day. Thank you for the honor of being
able to be a part of it.
谢谢你们，斯巴院长[译者注：中文名石德葆]、各位校董、伯林格校长。2012届毕业生，
你们好!(掌声)祝贺你们迎来了这一天。感谢你们让我有幸来参加这个活动。
There are so many people who are proud of you -- your parents, family, faculty,
friends -- all who share in this achievement. So please give them a big round of
applause. (Applause.) To all the moms who are here today, you could not ask for a
better Mother’s Day gift than to see all of these folks graduate. (Applause.)
有很多人为你们感到骄傲——你们的父母、家人、师长和朋友——都为取得这一成就出
了力。因此，请为他们热烈鼓掌。(掌声)今天在座的各位母亲们，再也没有比看到所有这些
孩子们毕业更好的母亲节礼物了。(掌声)
I have to say, though, whenever I come to these things, I start thinking about
Malia and Sasha graduating, and I start tearing up and -- (laughter) -- it's terrible.
I don't know how you guys are holding it together. (Laughter.)
但是我得说，每当我来到这种场合，就会想到玛莉娅和萨夏将来毕业的情景，我就会热
泪盈眶——(笑声)——真不好意思。我不知道你们大家是怎么把持得住的。(笑声)
I will begin by telling a hard truth: I’m a Columbia college graduate. (Laughter
and applause.) I know there can be a little bit of a sibling rivalry here. (Laughter.)
But I’m honored nevertheless to be your commencement speaker today -- although I’ve
got to say, you set a pretty high bar given the past three years. (Applause.) Hillary
Clinton -- (applause) -- Meryl Streep -- (applause) -- Sheryl Sandberg -- these are
not easy acts to follow. (Applause.)
我一开始就要说明一个确凿的事实：我是一名哥伦比亚大学的毕业生。(笑声和掌声)
我知道可能会有一点同门弟子相争的劲儿。(笑声)但我还是为能够在你们今天的毕业典礼上
讲话而感到荣幸——不过我得说，你们在过去三年树立了相当高的标准。(掌声)希拉里·克
林顿——(掌声)——梅丽尔·斯特里普——(掌声)——谢里尔·桑德伯格——在她们之后
出场可不容易。(掌声)
But I will point out Hillary is doing an extraordinary job as one of the finest
Secretaries of State America has ever had. (Applause.) We gave Meryl the Presidential
Medal of Arts and Humanities. (Applause.) Sheryl is not just a good friend; she’s
also one of our economic advisers. So it’s like the old saying goes -- keep your
friends close, and your Barnard co

mmencement speakers even closer. (Applause.)
There's wisdom in that. (Laughter.)
但我要指出，希拉里的工作极为出色，她是美国有史以来最杰出的国务卿之一。(掌声)
我们已授予梅丽尔艺术与人文总统奖章。(掌声)谢里尔不仅是一位好朋友;她还是我们的经
济顾问之一。正如那句老话所说——亲近你的朋友，但更要亲近在你们巴纳德学院毕业典礼
上讲话的人。(掌声)这话寓意深长。(笑声)
Now, the year I graduated -- this area looks familiar -- (laughter) -- the year
I graduated was 1983, the first year women were admitted to Columbia. (Applause.)
Sally Ride was the first American woman in space. Music was all about Michael and
the Moonwalk. (Laughter.)
话说我毕业那年——这个地方看着眼熟——(笑声)——我毕业于1983年，哥伦比亚大学
开始录取女生的第一年。(掌声)当时萨莉·莱德成为第一位进入太空的美国女性。那时的音
乐全是麦克尔和太空步。(笑声)
[AUDIENCE MEMBER: Do it! (Laughter.)]
【画外音：一名听众说“走一个!”(笑声)】
No Moonwalking. (Laughter.) No Moonwalking today. (Laughter.)
不走太空步。(笑声)今天不走太空步。(笑声)
We had the Walkman, not iPods. Some of the streets around here were not quite
so inviting. (Laughter.) Times Square was not a family destination. (Laughter.) So
I know this is all ancient history. Nothing worse than commencement speakers droning
on about bygone days. (Laughter.) But for all the differences, the Class of 1983
actually had a lot in common with all of you. For we, too, were heading out into
a world at a moment when our country was still recovering from a particularly severe
economic recession. It was a time of change. It was a time of uncertainty. It was
a time of passionate political debates.
我们当时有“随身听”，没有IPod。这四周的一些街区没有现在这样诱人。(笑声)时
报广场不是适合全家人去的地方。(笑声)我知道这一切都属于古老的过去了。毕业典礼演讲
人絮叨旧事是再糟糕不过的。但是，尽管有种种差别，1983年毕业班其实与你们各位有许多
共同之处。这是因为，当时我们踏入社会的时候，也正值国家从一场特别严重的经济衰退中
恢复。那是一个变革的时期，一个充满未知的时期，一个政治辨伦激情高涨的时期。
You can relate to this because just as you were starting out finding your way
around this campus, an economic crisis struck that would claim more than 5 million
jobs before the end of your freshman year. Since then, some of you have probably
seen parents put off retirement, friends struggle to find work. And you may be looking
toward the future with that same sense of concern that my generation did when we
were sitting where you are now.
你们能够体会到这一点，因为在你们刚开始熟悉这所校园

的时候，经济危机降临，不等
你们第一学年结束，它已经导致500多万人失业。从那个时候以来，你们大概看到一些父母
推迟了退休计划，一些朋友在苦苦求职。面对未来，你们也许像当年我这一代坐在你们的座
位上的时候一样，感到忧心忡忡。
Of course, as young women, you’re also going to grapple with some unique
challenges, like whether you’ll be able to earn equal pay for equal work; whether
you’ll be able to balance the demands of your job and your family; whether you’ll
be able to fully control decisions about your own health.
当然，作为年轻女性，你们还要应对某些特殊的挑战，比如是否能够享有同工同酬;是
否能够平衡工作和家庭的需要;是否能够对自身健康有全部决定权。
And while opportunities for women have grown exponentially over the last 30 years,
as young people, in many ways you have it even tougher than we did. This recession
has been more brutal, the job losses steeper. Politics seems nastier. Congress more
gridlocked than ever. Some folks in the financial world have not exactly been model
corporate citizens. (Laughter.)
虽然过去30年来女性的机会有了突飞猛进的增加，但作为年轻人，你们在很多方面面临
着比我们当时更严峻的挑战。这场衰退更加严重，失业人数更多。政治争议似乎更加难以调
和。国会比以往任何时候更加僵持。金融界的一些人很难被称为模范企业公民。(笑声)
No wonder that faith in our institutions has never been lower, particularly when
good news doesn’t get the same kind of ratings as bad news anymore. Every day you
receive a steady stream of sensationalism and scandal and stories with a message
that suggest change isn’t possible; that you can’t make a difference; that you
won’t be able to close that gap between life as it is and life as you want it to
be.
所以，毫不奇怪，对我们体制的信心达到空前之低，特别是好消息不如坏消息引人注意
的时候。人们每天接到一连串耸人听闻的消息或者丑闻，其中传递的信息是：变革是不可能
的;你们的努力无济于事;你们无法消除现实生活与你们的理想生活之间的差距。
My job today is to tell you don’t believe it. Because as tough as things have
been, I am convinced you are tougher. I’ve seen your passion and I’ve seen your
service. I’ve seen you engage and I’ve seen you turn out in record numbers. I’ve
heard your voices amplified by creativity and a digital fluency that those of us
in older generations can barely comprehend. I’ve seen a generation eager, impatient
even, to step into the rushing waters of history and change its course.
我今天的任务就是要告诉你们，不要相信这些说法。因为尽管困难很大，但我坚信你们
的能力更大。我看到过你们的激情，我看到过

你们的奉献。我看到过你们的投入，我看到过
你们挺身而出，人数空前。我听到了你们的声音，创意和对数码技术的精通使得这种声音格
外响亮，而我们这些年长的人几乎不得其解。我看到心情迫切、跃跃欲试的一代人准备跻身
历史激流中，扭转其方向。
And that defiant, can-do spirit is what runs through the veins of American
history. It’s the lifeblood of all our progress. And it is that spirit which we
need your generation to embrace and rekindle right now.
这种蔑视困难、积极进取的精神贯穿于整个美国历史的进程。这种精神是我们一切进步
的源泉。此时此刻，我们需要你们这一代继承和发扬光大的正是这种精神。
See, the question is not whether things will get better -- they always do. The
question is not whether we’ve got the solutions to our challenges -- we’ve had
them within our grasp for quite some time. We know, for example, that this country
would be better off if more Americans were able to get the kind of education that
you’ve received here at Barnard -- (applause) -- if more people could get the
specific skills and training that employers are looking for today.
可以看出，问题并不在于事情是否会好转——情况总是会变好的。问题也不在于我们是
否已经有了应对我们面临的挑战的解决办法——我们一直掌握着这些解决办法，已有相当一
段时间了。比如说，我们知道，如果有更多的美国人能得到你们在巴纳德得到的这样的教育
(掌声)——如果有更多的人能够获得今天的雇主所需要的那些特定的技能和训练，美国的情
况会更好。
We know that we’d all be better off if we invest in science and technology that
sparks new businesses and medical breakthroughs; if we developed more clean energy
so we could use less foreign oil and reduce the carbon pollution that’s threatening
our planet. (Applause.)
我们知道，如果我们投资于能够造就新的企业并带动医学突破的科学与技术，如果我们
开发出更多的清洁能源以减少使用外国石油并减少对我们的地球构成威胁的碳污染，我们大
家的日子会过得更好。(掌声)
We know that we’re better off when there are rules that stop big banks from
making bad bets with other people’s money and -- (applause) -- when insurance
companies aren’t allowed to drop your coverage when you need it most or charge women
differently from men. (Applause.) Indeed, we know we are better off when women are
treated fairly and equally in every aspect of American life -- whether it’s the
salary you earn or the health decisions you make. (Applause.)
我们知道，如果有一定的规则制止大银行拿别人的钱去恶赌(掌声)——如果不允许保险
公司在你最需要的时候取消你的保险资格或者对男女收费标准不一，我

们的日子会过得更
好。(掌声)确实，我们都知道，如果妇女在国家生活的方方面面都能得到公平与平等的对待
——无论是你的薪金所得还是你所作的健康决定，我们的日子会过得更好。(掌声)
We know these things to be true. We know that our challenges are eminently
solvable. The question is whether together, we can muster the will -- in our own
lives, in our common institutions, in our politics -- to bring about the changes
we need. And I’m convinced your generation possesses that will. And I believe that
the women of this generation -- that all of you will help lead the way. (Applause.)
我们知道这些都是实实在在的道理。我们知道，我们面临的挑战显然都是可以解决的。
问题是，我们是否能够拧成一股绳，拿出意志力——在我们自己的生活中，在我们共同的体
制中，在我们的政治事务中——实现我们所需的变革。我坚信，你们这一代具有这种意志力。
我相信，这一代女性——你们所有的人将会在这条道路上走在前面。
Now, I recognize that’s a cheap applause line when you're giving a commencement
at Barnard. (Laughter.) It’s the easy thing to say. But it’s true. It is -- in
part, it is simple math. Today, women are not just half this country; you’re half
its workforce. (Applause.) More and more women are out-earning their husbands.
You’re more than half of our college graduates, and master’s graduates, and PhDs.
(Applause.) So you’ve got us outnumbered. (Laughter.)
我承认，这是不用费力就能在巴纳德学院的毕业典礼上赢得鼓掌喝彩的一句话。(笑声)
说这样的话很容易。但事实确实如此。这是——在某种程度上，这是简单的数学题。今天，
妇女不仅占这个国家总人口的一半，你们还是这个国家劳动力的一半。(掌声)越来越多的女
性收入超过了她们的丈夫。你们在我们的大学毕业生中，在拥有硕士学位和博士学位的毕业
生中占了一半以上。(掌声)所以，你们在人数上超过了我们。(笑声)
After decades of slow, steady, extraordinary progress, you are now poised to
make this the century where women shape not only their own destiny but the destiny
of this nation and of this world.
在几十年来的缓慢、持续、不凡的进展之后，你们即将在本世纪实现这样的目标：妇女
不仅能改变自己的命运，还能改变这个国家乃至这个世界的命运。
But how far your leadership takes this country, how far it takes this world --
well, that will be up to you. You’ve got to want it. It will not be handed to you.
And as someone who wants that future -- that better future -- for you, and for Malia
and Sasha, as somebody who’s had the good fortune of being the husband and the father
and the son of some strong, remarkable women, allow me to offer just a few pieces
of advic

e. That's obligatory. (Laughter.) Bear with me.
然而，你们的主动性能使这个国家走多远、能使这个世界走多远，还要取决于你们自己。
你们必须有这种愿望。进步不可能由别人拱手奉上。作为一个希望你们、玛莉娅和萨夏拥有
这一前途及更美好前途的人，作为一个有幸成为几位坚强杰出的女性的丈夫、父亲和儿子的
人，请允许我贡献几条建议。这是义不容辞的。(笑声) 容我慢慢道来。
My first piece of advice is this: Don’t just get involved. Fight for your seat
at the table. Better yet, fight for a seat at the head of the table. (Applause.)
我的第一条建议是，仅仅参与还不够，要为在决策中赢得一席之地而奋斗。能为坐上首
席而奋斗就更好了。(掌声)
It’s been said that the most important role in our democracy is the role of
citizen. And indeed, it was 225 years ago today that the Constitutional Convention
opened in Philadelphia, and our founders, citizens all, began crafting an
extraordinary document. Yes, it had its flaws -- flaws that this nation has strived
to perfect over time. Questions of race and gender were unresolved. No woman’s
signature graced the original document -- although we can assume that there were
founding mothers whispering smarter things in the ears of the founding fathers.
(Applause.) I mean, that's almost certain.
有人说，我们民主中最重要的角色是公民角色。的确如此，225年前的今天，费城召开
了制宪大会，我们的开国元勋，我们所有的公民，开始起草一项伟大的纲领。是的，该文件
有缺陷，这个国家后来为了完善它而作出了努力。种族和性别问题当时没有得到解决。最初
的文件上没有妇女的签名来为之增添光彩，但是我们可以想象，一些开国之母在开国之父的
耳旁轻声细语地指点一些高招。(掌声)我是说，几乎肯定如此。
What made this document special was that it provided the space -- the possibility
-- for those who had been left out of our charter to fight their way in. It provided
people the language to appeal to principles and ideals that broadened democracy’s
reach. It allowed for protest, and movements, and the dissemination of new ideas
that would repeatedly, decade after decade, change the world -- a constant forward
movement that continues to this day.
这份文件之所以特别，是因为它为那些没有被纳入我们的宪法的人们提供了争取权利的
空间和可能性。它为人民提供了借助于一些原则和理想拓展民主范围的语言。它允许发起抗
议和运动，允许传播新思想，一代又一代地改变着世界，形成了一股永不休止的潮流，一直
延续到今天。
Our founders understood that America does not stand still; we are dynamic, not
static. We look forward, not back. And now that new doors have been opened for you

,
you’ve got an obligation to seize those opportunities.
我们的开国元勋认识到，美国并非一成不变;我们充满活力，不会停滞不前。我们向前
看，不回头。既然新的大门已为你们敞开，你们就有义务把握这些机会。
You need to do this not just for yourself but for those who don’t yet enjoy
the choices that you’ve had, the choices you will have. And one reason many
workplaces still have outdated policies is because women only account for 3 percent
of the CEOs at Fortune 500 companies. One reason we’re actually refighting
long-settled battles over women’s rights is because women occupy fewer than one
in five seats in Congress.
你们需要这么做，不仅是为了你们自己，也是为了那些没有得到你们已经有过以及还将
拥有的种种选择的人。许多工作场所仍在实行过时的政策，原因之一就是妇女只占财富500
强公司首席行政官的3%。我们仍在为争取妇女权利而再次进行早已完成的抗争，原因之一就
是妇女在国会所占的席位还不到五分之一。
Now, I’m not saying that the only way to achieve success is by climbing to the
top of the corporate ladder or running for office -- although, let’s face it,
Congress would get a lot more done if you did. (Laughter and applause.) That I think
we’re sure about. But if you decide not to sit yourself at the table, at the very
least you’ve got to make sure you have a say in who does. It matters.
我不是说取得成功的唯一途径是晋升到公司的最高层，或是竞选公职，不过，请让我们
面对这个事实：如果你们竞选公职，国会将能大有作为。(笑声和掌声) 我想大家对此是深
信无疑的。但如果你们决定不亲身参政，至少也应该确保自己有权选择议员。这很重要。
Before women like Barbara Mikulski and Olympia Snowe and others got to Congress,
just to take one example, much of federally-funded research on diseases focused
solely on their effects on men. It wasn’t until women like Patsy Mink and Edith
Green got to Congress and passed Title IX, 40 years ago this year, that we declared
women, too, should be allowed to compete and win on America’s playing fields.
(Applause.) Until a woman named Lilly Ledbetter showed up at her office and had the
courage to step up and say, you know what, this isn’t right, women weren’t being
treated fairly -- we lacked some of the tools we needed to uphold the basic principle
of equal pay for equal work.
例如，在像芭芭拉·米库尔斯基和奥林匹娅·斯诺及其他女性进入国会前，联邦资助的
大部分疾病研究主要侧重于疾病对男性的影响。40年前的今天，帕齐·明克和伊迪丝·格林
等女性进入国会并通过[教育法修正案]《第九条》，从而宣布女性也有资格在美国的运动场
上参与竞赛并取胜。(掌声)一个名叫莉莉·莱德贝

特的女性来到她的办公室，勇敢地而明确
地说：你们知道吗，这不对，女性没有得到公正待遇——我们缺乏一些必要的手段捍卫同工
同酬的基本原则。
So don’t accept somebody else’s construction of the way things ought to be.
It’s up to you to right wrongs. It’s up to you to point out injustice. It’s up
to you to hold the system accountable and sometimes upend it entirely. It’s up to
you to stand up and to be heard, to write and to lobby, to march, to organize, to
vote. Don’t be content to just sit back and watch.
所以不要接受别人对于事情理当如何的看法。你应当來纠正错误做法。你应当來指出不
公不义。你应当来督促社会体制负起责任，有时需要全盘改变。你应当挺身而出，发表意见，
撰文游说，游行示威，组织民众，投票表决。不要满足于袖手旁观。
Those who oppose change, those who benefit from an unjust status quo, have always
bet on the public’s cynicism or the public's complacency. Throughout American
history, though, they have lost that bet, and I believe they will this time as well.
(Applause.) But ultimately, Class of 2012, that will depend on you. Don’t wait for
the person next to you to be the first to speak up for what’s right. Because maybe,
just maybe, they’re waiting on you.
那些反对变革、受益于不公平现状的人，总是赌定公众要不是愤世嫉俗就是洋洋自得。
可是纵观美国历史，他们一再下错赌注，我相信这一次也不例外。(掌声)可是说到底，2012
届的同学们，这将取决于你们。不要等待你身旁的人第一个为正义发言。因为有可能，只是
有此可能，他们正在等你带头。
Which brings me to my second piece of advice: Never underestimate the power of
your example. The very fact that you are graduating, let alone that more women now
graduate from college than men, is only possible because earlier generations of women
-- your mothers, your grandmothers, your aunts -- shattered the myth that you
couldn’t or shouldn’t be where you are. (Applause.)
这就涉及我的第二条建议：切勿低估以身作则的力量。你们即将毕业的事实，且不说目
前大学毕业的女生人数超过男生，都是因为前辈女性--你们的母亲、祖母、姨婶--打破了你
不能或者不应当身在此处的神话。(掌声)
I think of a friend of mine who’s the daughter of immigrants. When she was in
high school, her guidance counselor told her, you know what, you’re just not college
material. You should think about becoming a secretary. Well, she was stubborn, so
she went to college anyway. She got her master’s. She ran for local office, won.
She ran for state office, she won. She ran for Congress, she won. And lo and behold,
Hilda Solis did end up becoming a secretary -- (laughter) -- she is America’s
Secretary of Labor. (Applause.)

我想起一位朋友，她是移民的女儿。念中学时，她的指导老师告诉她，你不是念大学的
材料，你应当考虑去当秘书。她很固执，所以还是念了大学，进而拿到硕士学位。她竞选地
方公职，结果胜选。她竞选州政府公职，再度胜选。她竞选国会议员，又是胜选。请听好了，
希尔达·索利斯最终的确成为一名秘书--(笑声)--她成为美国劳工部的秘书[译者注：“秘
书”和“部长”在英文中是同一个单词]。(掌声)
So think about what that means to a young Latina girl when she sees a Cabinet
secretary that looks like her. (Applause.) Think about what it means to a young girl
in Iowa when she sees a presidential candidate who looks like her. Think about what
it means to a young girl walking in Harlem right down the street when she sees a
U.N. ambassador who looks like her. Do not underestimate the power of your example.
所以想想看，当一名拉丁裔的小女孩看到一名长得像她的内阁部长，会作何感想。(掌
声) 当一名艾奥瓦州的小女孩看到一名长得像她的总统候选人，会作何感想。当一名小女孩
走在哈莱姆区的街上，看到一名长得像她的驻联合国大使，她会作何感想。不要低估了你们
以身作则的力量。
This diploma opens up new possibilities, so reach back, convince a young girl
to earn one, too. If you earned your degree in areas where we need more women --
like computer science or engineering -- (applause) -- reach back and persuade another
student to study it, too. If you're going into fields where we need more women, like
construction or computer engineering -- reach back, hire someone new. Be a mentor.
Be a role model.
这张文凭将会开辟新的可能性，因此，回过头去，说服另一个小女孩也去追求文凭。如
果你们学习的专业是需要更多女性投入的领域--比如计算机科学或者工程学--(掌声)--也
要说服另一名学生加入你们的学习行列。如果你们进入的是需要更多女性加入的领域，如建
筑施工或者计算机工程--那就回头聘一位新人。做一个指导者。做一个好榜样。
Until a girl can imagine herself, can picture herself as a computer programmer,
or a combatant commander, she won’t become one. Until there are women who tell her,
ignore our pop culture obsession over beauty and fashion -- (applause) -- and focus
instead on studying and inventing and competing and leading, she’ll think those
are the only things that girls are supposed to care about. Now, Michelle will say,
nothing wrong with caring about it a little bit. (Laughter.) You can be stylish and
powerful, too. (Applause.) That's Michelle’s advice. (Applause.)
一名女孩要成为计算机程序员或者军事指挥官，她必须首先具备这样的理想。如果没有
别的女性告诉她，不要在意我们的流行文化对于美丽

和时尚的迷恋--(掌声)--而是专注学
习，发明创新，与人竞争，发挥领导作用，她就会一直在意那些事情。好，米歇尔会说，在
意一点又何妨。(笑声)你可以既时髦又有力量。(掌声) 那是米歇尔的建议。(掌声)
And never forget that the most important example a young girl will ever follow
is that of a parent. Malia and Sasha are going to be outstanding women because
Michelle and Marian Robinson are outstanding women. So understand your power, and
use it wisely.
千万不要忘记一个女孩仿效的最重要榜样就是她的父母。玛莉娅和莎夏将会成为杰出的
女性，因为米歇尔和玛丽安·鲁宾逊都是杰出的女性。所以，要认识到你们的力量，并且明
智地加以运用。
My last piece of advice -- this is simple, but perhaps most important: Persevere.
Persevere. Nothing worthwhile is easy. No one of achievement has avoided failure
-- sometimes catastrophic failures. But they keep at it. They learn from mistakes.
They don’t quit.
我的最后一点建议--这很简单，但可能是最重要的一点：坚持不懈。坚持不懈。有价值
的事物得之不易。没有一个有成就的人能够避免失败--有时甚至是一败涂地。可是他们坚持
不懈，从错误中学习。他们绝不放弃。
You know, when I first arrived on this campus, it was with little money, fewer
options. But it was here that I tried to find my place in this world. I knew I wanted
to make a difference, but it was vague how in fact I’d go about it. (Laughter.)
But I wanted to do my part to do my part to shape a better world.
你们知道，我刚到这个校园时，没多少钱，更没多少选择。但正是在这里，我试图寻找
我在这个世界上的立足之地。我知道我想有所作为，但却不清楚如何去做。(笑声)可我想尽
自己的力量去建设一个更美好的世界。
So even as I worked after graduation in a few unfulfilling jobs here in New York
-- I will not list them all -- (laughter) -- even as I went from motley apartment
to motley apartment, I reached out. I started to write letters to community
organizations all across the country. And one day, a small group of churches on the
South Side of Chicago answered, offering me work with people in neighborhoods hit
hard by steel mills that were shutting down and communities where jobs were dying
away.
因此，即使当我毕业后在纽约从事几份没有成就感的工作的时候——我不会一一列举
——(笑声)——即使在我搬出一间杂乱的公寓又搬到另一间同样杂乱的公寓的时候，我也在
努力求索。我开始给全国各地的社区组织写信。有一天，芝加哥南区的一个小型教会组织回
了信，给了我一份为当地居民服务的工作，他们那里的钢厂停业使他们受到沉重打击，那里
的就业机会也一天天消失。
The community had been p

lagued by gang violence, so once I arrived, one of the
first things we tried to do was to mobilize a meeting with community leaders to deal
with gangs. And I’d worked for weeks on this project. We invited the police; we
made phone calls; we went to churches; we passed out flyers. The night of the meeting
we arranged rows and rows of chairs in anticipation of this crowd. And we waited,
and we waited. And finally, a group of older folks walked in to the hall and they
sat down. And this little old lady raised her hand and asked, “Is this where the
bingo game is?” (Laughter.) It was a disaster. Nobody showed up. My first big
community meeting -- nobody showed up.
当地社区一直被帮派暴力所扰，所以我一到那里，我们争取做的第一件事情就是与社区
领袖开会商量应对帮派的对策。我为这项工作忙了好几个星期。我们邀请了警察;我们打了
电话，我们去了教堂;我们散发了传单。要开会的那天晚上，我们排好了一排排椅子，以为
会有一大群人到会。我们等啊等。最后，一群老人走进大厅，然后坐下来。有一位瘦小的
老太太举起了手，问道：“宾果游戏是在这里吗?”(笑声)真是糟糕透了。没有人来。我的
第一个社区大会——没有人到场。
And later, the volunteers I worked with told me, that's it; we’re quitting.
They'd been doing this for two years even before I had arrived. They had nothing
to show for it. And I’ll be honest, I felt pretty discouraged as well. I didn't
know what I was doing. I thought about quitting. And as we were talking, I looked
outside and saw some young boys playing in a vacant lot across the street. And they
were just throwing rocks up at a boarded building. They had nothing better to do
-- late at night, just throwing rocks. And I said to the volunteers, “Before you
quit, answer one question. What will happen to those boys if you quit? Who will fight
for them if we don’t? Who will give them a fair shot if we leave?
后来，和我一起工作的志愿人员对我说，够了，我们不干了。他们在我来之前已经干了
两年之久。他们觉得没有任何成就可言。说实话，我也感到相当气馁。我不知道我在做什
么。我想过不干了。当我们交谈的时候，我往外边看了看，看到一群年轻的男孩在马路对面
的空地上玩耍。他们正对着一座用板子钉起来的建筑物投掷石块。他们百无聊赖——在深夜，
扔石头玩。我对那些志愿人员说：“在你们退出之前，先回答一个问题。如果你们不干了那
些男孩会怎么样?如果我们不为他们着想，还有谁会为他们奋斗呢?如果我们走了，还有谁会
给他们一个公平的机会呢?
And one by one, the volunteers decided not to quit. We went back to those
neighborhoods and we kept at it. We registered new voters, and we set up after-school
programs, and we fo

ught for new jobs, and helped people live lives with some measure
of dignity. And we sustained ourselves with those small victories. We didn’t set
the world on fire. Some of those communities are still very poor. There are still
a lot of gangs out there. But I believe that it was those small victories that helped
me win the bigger victories of my last three and a half years as President.
志愿者们一个接一个地决定不放弃。我们回到那些街区，继续坚持工作。我们给新选民
登记，我们安排课后活动，我们争取新的就业机会，并帮助人们活得更有尊严。我们用那些
小小的胜利鼓励自己。我们并没有做什么惊天动地的事。这些社区中有一些仍然很贫穷。那
里仍然有很多的帮派出没。但我相信，就是这些小小的胜利帮助我在这三年半里作为总统赢
得了更大的胜利。
And I wish I could say that this perseverance came from some innate toughness
in me. But the truth is, it was learned. I got it from watching the people who raised
me. More specifically, I got it from watching the women who shaped my life.
我希望我能说这种执着源于我与生俱来的某种毅力。但事实是，这是后天学到的。我是
从养育我的人身上学到的。更具体地说，我是从影响了我的生活的那些女性身上学到的。
I grew up as the son of a single mom who struggled to put herself through school
and make ends meet. She had marriages that fell apart; even went on food stamps at
one point to help us get by. But she didn’t quit. And she earned her degree, and
made sure that through scholarships and hard work, my sister and I earned ours. She
used to wake me up when we were living overseas -- wake me up before dawn to study
my English lessons. And when I’d complain, she’d just look at me and say, “This
is no picnic for me either, buster.” (Laughter.)
我是一个单身母亲的儿子，她含辛茹苦，在努力维持家庭生计的同时完成学业。她有过
破碎的婚姻，甚至一度靠领取食品劵勉强养家度日。但她没有放弃。她获得了学位，并确保
我和我妹妹能依靠奖学金和辛勤努力来获得我们的学位。当我们在海外生活时，她常常叫我
起床——天不亮就起床，学习英语课程。当我抱怨时，她就会看着我说：“小子，这对我也
并不轻松。”(笑声)
And my mom ended up dedicating herself to helping women around the world access
the money they needed to start their own businesses -- she was an early pioneer in
microfinance. And that meant, though, that she was gone a lot, and she had her own
struggles trying to figure out balancing motherhood and a career. And when she was
gone, my grandmother stepped up to take care of me.
我的母亲最终完全投入到帮助世界各地妇女获得创业所需资金的工作中——她是微型
信贷的一个先驱。但这意味着她经常

不在家，而且她有着自身的挣扎，要努力在做母亲和发
展事业之间找到平衡。她不在家时，我的外祖母承担起照顾我的责任。
She only had a high school education. She got a job at a local bank. She hit
the glass ceiling, and watched men she once trained promoted up the ladder ahead
of her. But she didn’t quit. Rather than grow hard or angry each time she got passed
over, she kept doing her job as best as she knew how, and ultimately ended up being
vice president at the bank. She didn’t quit.
她仅受过高中教育。她在当地银行找到一份工作，她遇到了事业上的玻璃天花板，眼看
着她曾经培训过的男人晋升到比她更高的级别。但她没有退却。她没有因一次次机会旁落而
变得冷漠或愤怒，而是继续尽自己最大努力做好工作，最终她成为银行的副总裁。她没有退
却。
And later on, I met a woman who was assigned to advise me on my first summer
job at a law firm. And she gave me such good advice that I married her. (Laughter.)
And Michelle and I gave everything we had to balance our careers and a young family.
But let’s face it, no matter how enlightened I must have thought myself to be, it
often fell more on her shoulders when I was traveling, when I was away. I know that
when she was with our girls, she’d feel guilty that she wasn’t giving enough time
to her work, and when she was at her work, she’d feel guilty she wasn’t giving
enough time to our girls. And both of us wished we had some superpower that would
let us be in two places at once. But we persisted. We made that marriage work.
后来，我遇到一位女性，她被派来担任我在一家律师事务所从事的第一份暑期工作的指
导。她对我的指导如此之好，以致于我娶了她。(笑声)米歇尔和我竭尽全力在发展事业与照
顾幼小的孩子之间找到平衡。但是说实话，不管我当时可能认为自己是多么开通，在我外出
旅行时，在我不在家时，家事往往更多地落在她的肩上。我知道，在照顾我们的两个女儿时，
她为没有在工作上付出足够时间感到内疚;而当她上班时，又为没有给孩子足够的时间感到
内疚。我们俩都唯愿我们有某种超人的能力，使我们能够两者兼顾。但我们坚持住了，我们
的努力保证了婚姻的成功。
And the reason Michelle had the strength to juggle everything, and put up with
me and eventually the public spotlight, was because she, too, came from a family
of folks who didn’t quit -- because she saw her dad get up and go to work every
day even though he never finished college, even though he had crippling MS. She saw
her mother, even though she never finished college, in that school, that urban school,
every day making sure Michelle and her brother were getting the education they
deserved. Michelle saw how her parents never quit. They never indulg

ed in self-pity,
no matter how stacked the odds were against them. They didn't quit.
米歇尔之所以能够坚强地招架一切并忍受我，而且最终忍受公众聚光，是因为她同样来
自一个不轻易退却的家庭——因为她看到她的父亲每天一大早起来去上班，尽管他从未念完
大学，尽管他患有影响行动的多发性硬化症。她看到，尽管她的母亲从未念完大学，但在那
个学校，那个贫民区的学校，她每天都确保米歇尔和她的哥哥受到他们应该得到的教育。米
歇尔看到她的父母从不放弃。他们从不沉溺于自怜，不管他们面临多么不利的境况。他们从
不放弃。
Those are the folks who inspire me. People ask me sometimes, who inspires you,
Mr. President? Those quiet heroes all across this country -- some of your parents
and grandparents who are sitting here -- no fanfare, no articles written about them,
they just persevere. They just do their jobs. They meet their responsibilities. They
don't quit. I'm only here because of them. They may not have set out to change the
world, but in small, important ways, they did. They certainly changed mine.
正是这些人激励着我。人们有时问我，总统先生，是谁激励着你?是这个国家各地那些
默默耕耘的英雄——今天在座的你们一些人的父母和祖父母——他们不张扬，没有文章报道
他们，他们只是坚持不懈。他们只是做好本职工作。他们履行自己的责任。他们不放弃。正
是因为有他们我才站到这里。他们或许并没有从一开始就要改变世界，但他们以一点一滴的
重要方式，改变了世界。他们无疑改变了我的世界。
So whether it’s starting a business, or running for office, or raising an
amazing family, remember that making your mark on the world is hard. It takes patience.
It takes commitment. It comes with plenty of setbacks and it comes with plenty of
failures.
因此，无论是创办一家企业、竞选公职、还是抚养一个美好的家庭，请记住：要在这
个世界上留下你的影响不是一件轻而易举的事情。它需要耐心。它需要投入。随之而来的是
大量挫折，以及无数次的失败。
But whenever you feel that creeping cynicism, whenever you hear those voices
say you can’t make a difference, whenever somebody tells you to set your sights
lower -- the trajectory of this country should give you hope. Previous generations
should give you hope. What young generations have done before should give you hope.
Young folks who marched and mobilized and stood up and sat in, from Seneca Falls
to Selma to Stonewall, didn’t just do it for themselves; they did it for other people.
(Applause.)
但每当你感觉到那种迎面扑来的冷嘲热讽，每当你听到人们说你无法改变现状，每当有
人告诉你要苟且偷生——这个国家走过的道路应该给你带来

希望。前几代人的经历应该给你
带来希望。在你之前的一代又一代年轻人做过的一切应该给你带来希望。无论是在塞尼卡福
尔斯还是在塞尔玛或是在石墙，当时那些参加游行、动员起来、挺身而出、进行静坐的年轻
人，他们不仅仅是为自己这样做;他们这样做是为了别人。(掌声)
That’s how we achieved women’s rights. That's how we achieved voting rights.
That's how we achieved workers’ rights. That's how we achieved gay rights.
(Applause.) That’s how we’ve made this Union more perfect. (Applause.)
就是这样，我们获得了妇女权利;就是这样，我们获得了选举权;就是这样，我们获得了
工人权利;就是这样，我们获得了同性恋权利。(掌声)就是这样，我们使我们的合众国更趋
完美。(掌声)
And if you’re willing to do your part now, if you're willing to reach up and
close that gap between what America is and what America should be, I want you to
know that I will be right there with you. (Applause.) If you are ready to fight for
that brilliant, radically simple idea of America that no matter who you are or what
you look like, no matter who you love or what God you worship, you can still pursue
your own happiness, I will join you every step of the way. (Applause.)
如果你们愿意现在就来尽你们的职责，如果你们愿意竭尽所能缩小美国现状与理想之间
的差距，我想让你们知道：我会与你们站在一起。(掌声)。不管你是谁、不管你的外貌如何、
不管你爱的是谁或敬拜什么样的神，你仍然可以追求自己的幸福——如果你准备为美国实现
这个十分简单却又非常美好的想法而奋斗，我会在前进的道路上与你并肩迈出每一步。(掌
声)
Now more than ever -- now more than ever, America needs what you, the Class of
2012, has to offer. America needs you to reach high and hope deeply. And if you fight
for your seat at the table, and you set a better example, and you persevere in what
you decide to do with your life, I have every faith not only that you will succeed,
but that, through you, our nation will continue to be a beacon of light for men and
women, boys and girls, in every corner of the globe.
与以往任何时候相比——与以往任何时候相比，现在美国都更需要你们——2012届的同
学们——所能贡献的一切。美国需要你们高瞻远瞩、胸怀大志。如果你们为争取自己的发言
权而奋斗，树立一个更好的榜样，坚持做你们一生中立志要做的事情，我坚信，不仅你们会
取得成功，而且由于你们的努力，我们的国家将继续是为全球每一个角落的男人和女人、男
孩和女孩照耀航程的灯塔。
So thank you. Congratulations. (Applause.) God bless you. God bless the United
States of America. (Applause.)
因此，谢谢大家。向你们祝贺。(掌声)上

帝保佑你们。上帝保佑美利坚合众国。(掌声)