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1、奥巴马告别演讲稿英文原稿 Its good to be home. My fellow Americans, Michelle and I have been so touched by all the well-wishes weve received over the past few weeks. But tonight its my turn to say thanks. Whether weve seen eye-to-eye or rarely agreed at all, my conversations with you, the American people in livi
2、ng rooms and schools; at farms and on factory floors; at diners and on distant outposts are what have kept me honest, kept me inspired, and kept me going. Every day, I learned from you. You made me a better President, and you made me a better man. I first came to Chicago when I was in my early twent
3、ies, still trying to figure out who I was; still searching for a purpose to my life. It was in neighborhoods not far from here where I began working with church groups in the shadows of closed steel mills. It was on these streets where I witnessed the power of faith, and the quiet dignity of working
4、 people in the face of struggle and loss. This is where I learned that change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged, and come together to demand it. After eight years as your President, I still believe that. And its not just my belief. Its the beating heart of our American idea
5、 our bold experiment in self-government. Its the conviction that we are all created equal, endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights, among them life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Its the insistence that these rights, while self-evident, have never been self-executing; that We
6、, the People, through the instrument of our democracy, can form a more perfect union. This is the great gift our Founders gave us. The freedom to chase our individual dreams through our sweat, toil, and imagination and the imperative to strive together as well, to achieve a greater good. For 240 yea
7、rs, our nations call to citizenship has given work and purpose to each new generation. Its what led patriots to choose republic over tyranny, pioneers to trek west, slaves to brave that makeshift railroad to freedom. Its what pulled immigrants and refugees across oceans and the Rio Grande, pushed wo
8、men to reach for the ballot, powered workers to organize. Its why GIs gave their lives at Omaha Beach and Iwo Jima; Iraq and Afghanistan and why men and women from Selma to Stonewall were prepared to give theirs as well. So thats what we mean when we say America is exceptional. Not that our nation h
9、as been flawless from the start, but that we have shown the capacity to change, and make life better for those who follow. For white Americans, it means acknowledging that the effects of slavery and Jim Crow didnt suddenly vanish in the 60s; that when minority groups voice discontent, theyre not jus
10、t engaging in reverse racism or practicing political correctness; that when they wage peaceful protest, theyre not demanding special treatment, but the equal treatment our Founders promised. For native-born Americans, it means reminding ourselves that the stereotypes about immigrants today were said
11、, almost word for word, about the Irish, Italians, and Poles. America wasnt weakened by the presence of these newcomers; they embraced this nations creed, and it was strengthened. So regardless of the station we occupy; we have to try harder; to start with the premise that each of our fellow citizen
12、s loves this country just as much as we do; that they value hard work and family like we do; that their children are just as curious and hopeful and worthy of love as our own. None of this is easy. For too many of us, its become safer to retreat into our own bubbles, whether in our neighborhoods or
13、college campuses or places of worship or our social media feeds, surrounded by people who look like us and share the same political outlook and never challenge our assumptions. The rise of naked partisanship, increasing economic and regional stratification, the splintering of our media into a channe
14、l for every taste all this makes this great sorting seem natural, even inevitable. And increasingly, we become so secure in our bubbles that we accept only information, whether true or not, that fits our opinions, instead of basing our opinions on the evidence thats out there. This trend represents
15、a third threat to our democracy. Politics is a battle of ideas; in the course of a healthy debate, well prioritize different goals, and the different means of reaching them. But without some common baseline of facts; without a willingness to admit new information, and concede that your opponent is m
16、aking a fair point, and that science and reason matter, well keep talking past each other, making common ground and compromise impossible. Isnt that part of what makes politics so dispiriting? How can elected officials rage about deficits when we propose to spend money on preschool for kids, but not when were cutting taxes for corporations? How do we excuse ethical lapses in our own party, but pounce when the other party does the same thing? Its not just dis
