THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Good morning, everybody.
奥巴马总统:谢谢你们。(掌声)大家早上好。

AUDIENCE: Good morning, Mr. President.
仪式现场观众:总统先生,早上好。

THE PRESIDENT: Secretary Napolitano, Director Mayorkas, distinguished guests, family and friends -- welcome to the White House. Happy Fourth of July. What a perfect way to celebrate America’s birthday -- the world’s oldest democracy, with some of our newest citizens.
总统:纳波利塔诺部长、马约尔卡斯局长、贵宾们、家属和朋友们——欢迎你们来到白宫。7月4日快乐!这是一个庆祝美国诞生日的多么理想的方式——与我们一些最新的公民一起庆祝世界上最老的民主国家。

I have to tell you, just personally, this is one of my favorite things to do. It brings me great joy and inspiration because it reminds us that we are a country that is bound together not simply by ethnicity or bloodlines, but by fidelity to a set of ideas. And as members of our military, you raised your hand and took an oath of service. It is an honor for me to serve as your Commander-in-Chief. Today, you raised your hand and have taken an oath of citizenship. And I could not be prouder to be among the first to greet you as "my fellow Americans."
我还要告诉各位,就个人来说,这是我最喜欢的事情之一。它给我带来巨大的喜悦和灵感,因为它提醒我们,我们不是一个单纯靠种族或血缘组成的国家,我们是以对一套理念的忠贞不渝结合在一起。作为军人中的一员,你们曾举手宣誓效忠。作为你们的总司令,我荣幸之至。今天,你们举手宣誓成为公民。能第一个欢迎你们,称你们为“我的美国同胞”,让我无比自豪。

Looking back, it was an act of extraordinary audacity -- a few dozen delegates, in that hall in Philadelphia, daring to defy the mightiest empire in the world, declaring "that these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States."
回顾历史,当时是一个非同寻常的大胆举动——数十名代表,在费城的那个大厅里,敢于反抗世界上最强大的帝国,宣布“这些殖民地的联合体是、而且按其权利应该是自由和独立的国家”。

Two hundred and thirty-six years later, we marvel at America’s story. From a string of 13 colonies to 50 states from sea to shining sea. From a fragile experiment in democracy to a beacon of freedom that still lights the world. From a society of farmers and merchants to the largest, most dynamic economy in the world. From a ragtag army of militias and regulars to you -- the finest military that the world has ever known. From a population of some 3 million -- free and slave -- to more than 300 million Americans of every color and every creed.
236年后,我们为美国的历史而惊叹。从一串13个殖民地到从太平洋到大西洋的50个州。从一个脆弱的民主实验到至今仍照亮世界的自由灯塔。从一个农民和商人社会到一个世界上充满活力的最大经济体。从一支衣衫褴褛的民兵和正规兵队伍到你们这支世界迄今所知最优秀的军队。从包括自由人和奴隶的约300万人到包括各种肤色和信仰的3亿美国人。

With this ceremony today -- and ceremonies like it across our country -- we affirm another truth: Our American journey, our success, would simply not be possible without the generations of immigrants who have come to our shores from every corner of the globe. We say it so often, we sometimes forget what it means -- we are a nation of immigrants. Unless you are one of the first Americans, a Native American, we are all descended from folks who came from someplace else -- whether they arrived on the Mayflower or on a slave ship, whether they came through Ellis Island or crossed the Rio Grande.
通过今天这个仪式——以及全国类似的仪式——我们证明了又一个事实:我们美国的历程、我们的成功,如果没有来自地球每个角落的代代移民,是完全不可能的。我们将这样一句话如此频繁地挂在嘴边,以致有时会忘记其含义: 我们是一个移民国家。除非你是这里最早的居民, 是原住民,否则我们就都是来自他方的移民后裔——无论他们是乘“五月花号”或是奴隶船,无论他们是通过埃利斯岛还是越过格兰德河。

Immigrants signed their names to our Declaration and helped win our independence. Immigrants helped lay the railroads and build our cities, calloused hand by calloused hand. Immigrants took up arms to preserve our union, to defeat fascism, and to win a Cold War. Immigrants and their descendants helped pioneer new industries and fuel our Information Age, from Google to the iPhone. So the story of immigrants in America isn’t a story of "them," it’s a story of "us". It’s who we are. And now, all of you get to write the next chapter.
是移民们签署了《独立宣言》,帮助赢得了我们的独立。是移民们用一双双长满老茧的手,帮助铺设了铁路和建设了我们的城市。是移民们拿起武器,维护了我们的合众国,打败了法西斯,取得了冷战的胜利。是移民及其后代帮助开拓了新的产业,推动了我们从谷歌到iPhone的信息时代。因此,美国移民的经历不是“他们”的经历,而是“我们”的经历。这是我们的本色。现在,你们所有的人可以谱写新的篇章。

Each of you have traveled your own path to this moment -- from Cameroon and the Philippines, Russia and Palau and places in between. Some of you came here as children, brought by parents who dreamed of giving you the opportunities that they had never had. Others of you came as adults, finding your way through a new country and a new culture and a new language.
你们每个人都以自己的不同方式走到这一刻——从喀麦隆到菲律宾,从俄罗斯到帕劳以及其间各个地方。你们有些人来的时候还是孩子,被梦想让你们得到他们从未有过的机会的父母带到这里。另一些人作为成年人来到这里,在一个新的国度探索生活,适应新的文化和新的语言。

All of you did something profound: You chose to serve. You put on the uniform of a country that was not yet fully your own. In a time of war, some of you deployed into harm’s way. You displayed the values that we celebrate every Fourth of July -- duty, responsibility, and patriotism.
你们所有的人都做了一件意义深远的事:选择服兵役。你们穿上了一个尚未完全是自己国家的军装。一旦战争到来,你们中一些人奔赴疆场,出生入死。你们展现了我们在每年7月4日弘扬的价值观——义务、职责和爱国精神。

We salute a husband and father, originally from Mexico, now a United States Marine, joined today by his wife Silvia and daughter Juliett. Becoming a citizen, he says, is "another step in the right direction for my family." So today we congratulate Francisco Ballesteros De La Rosa. Where’s Francisco? (Applause.)
我们向一位原来自墨西哥、现在是美国海军陆战队队员的丈夫和父亲致敬,今天他的妻子西尔维娅和女儿朱丽叶和他一起到场。他说,成为美国公民,是“我们家向正确方向迈出的又一步”。因此,我们今天要向弗朗西斯科•巴列斯特罗斯•德拉罗萨表示祝贺。弗朗西斯科在哪儿?(掌声)

We salute a young woman from El Salvador, who came here when she was just six, grew up in America, who says she "always had a desire to serve" and who dreamed of becoming -- who dreams of becoming an Army medic. So we congratulate Luisa Childers. Luisa. (Applause.)
我们向来自萨尔瓦多的一位女青年致敬。她来到这里时年仅六岁,在美国长大。她说,她“始终有一种为国服务的愿望”,并梦想成为——她梦想成为一名陆军卫生兵。为此,我们向路易莎•奇尔德斯表示祝贺。路易莎。(掌声)

We salute a young man from Nigeria who came here as a child. "I left Nigeria," he says, "with the dream that we all have a destiny in life and we are all born with the resources to make a difference." We are confident he will make a difference. We congratulate Oluwatosin Akinduro. (Applause.)
我们向幼时从尼日利亚来到这里的一位年轻人致敬。他说:“我怀着梦想离开尼日利亚,那就是,我们都有自己的命运,我们都有与生俱来的能力有所作为。”我们相信他将有所作为,让我们祝贺奥卢瓦图辛•阿金杜鲁。(掌声)

We salute a young man from Bolivia, who came to America, enlisted in our military and has volunteered to help care for our veterans. He’s becoming a citizen, he says, to be a "part of the freedom that everybody is looking for." And so we congratulate Javier Beltran. (Applause.)
我们向来自玻利维亚的一位年轻人致敬。他来到美国,在这里参军,并志愿帮助照顾我们的退伍军人。他说,他成为美国公民是为了“成为人人向往的自由的一部分”。为此,让我们向哈维尔•贝尔特兰表示祝贺。(掌声)

It has taken these men and women -- these Americans -- years, even decades, to realize their dream. And this, too, reminds us of a lesson of the Fourth. On that July day, our Founders declared their independence. But they only declared it; it would take another seven years to win the war. Fifteen years to forge a Constitution and a Bill of Rights. Nearly 90 years, and a great Civil War, to abolish slavery. Nearly 150 years for women to win the right to vote. Nearly 190 years to enshrine voting rights. And even now, we’re still perfecting our union, still extending the promise of America.
他们——这些美国人——经过多年甚至数十年的努力来实现他们的梦想。这也促使我们重温 “7月4日”的意义。在7月的那个日子,我们的建国先贤宣布独立。但他们仅仅是宣布独立——其后经过了7年才赢得战争;15年才制定出宪法和权利法案;将近90年及一场重大的南北战争才废除了奴隶制;将近150年妇女才赢得选举权;将近190年才尊重投票权;甚至直至今天,我们仍然在不断完善我们的合众国,仍然在继续扩大美国的承诺。

That includes making sure the American dream endures for all those -- like these men and women -- who are willing to work hard, play by the rules and meet their responsibilities. For just as we remain a nation of laws, we have to remain a nation of immigrants. And that’s why, as another step forward, we’re lifting the shadow of deportation from serving -- from deserving young people who were brought to this country as children. It’s why we still need a DREAM Act -- to keep talented young people who want to contribute to our society and serve our country. It’s why we need -- why America’s success demands -- comprehensive immigration reform.
这包括,确保美国梦将继续属于所有人——就像这些愿意努力工作、愿意遵纪守法并履行职责的男女志士。正如我们将继续是法治国家,我们也必须继续是移民国家。正因为如此,我们迈出新的前进步伐,正在为那些幼时被带到这个国家的年轻人排除遣返的阴影;正因为如此,我们仍然需要《梦想法案》,留住那些愿意为我们的社会作贡献、为我们的国家服务的有才华的年轻人。正因为如此,我们需要进行——为美国的成功必须进行——全面的移民改革。

Because the lesson of these 236 years is clear -- immigration makes America stronger. Immigration makes us more prosperous. And immigration positions America to lead in the 21st century. And these young men and women are testaments to that. No other nation in the world welcomes so many new arrivals. No other nation constantly renews itself, refreshes itself with the hopes, and the drive, and the optimism, and the dynamism of each new generation of immigrants. You are all one of the reasons that America is exceptional. You’re one of the reasons why, even after two centuries, America is always young, always looking to the future, always confident that our greatest days are still to come.
因为,这236年给我们的教益十分清楚——移民使得美国更强大;移民使我们更加繁荣;移民让我国居于21世纪的领先地位。这些男女年轻人是这一切的证明。世界上没有任何其他国家欢迎如此之多的新来者,也没有任何其他国家始终自我更新,以希望、干劲、乐观和一代又一代新移民的活力而不断意气风发。你们大家是让美国如此杰出的原因之一;你们是让美国——即使在两个世纪之后——仍然青春长在、始终面向未来、永远深信我们最辉煌的日子尚在前头的原因之一。

So, to all of you, I want to wish you the happiest Fourth of July. God bless you all. God bless our men and women in uniform and your families. And God bless the United States of America. (Applause.)
因此,全体各位,祝你们有一个最最愉快的国庆节。愿上帝保佑各位;愿上帝保佑我们的男女军人和他们的家人;愿上帝保佑美利坚合众国。(掌声)

And with that, I want you to join me in welcoming onto the stage one of America’s newest citizens. Born in Guatemala, he enlisted in the Marine Corps, served with honor in Afghanistan. And I know he’s especially proud because, in a few days, his father Walter -- who’s also here today -- will become a naturalized American citizen as well. Where’s Walter? There he is over there. (Laughter.) Good to see you, Walter. (Applause.) Please welcome, Lance Corporal Byron Acevedo to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance.
我就讲到这里。现在请大家跟我一起欢迎美国最新的公民之一上台。他生于危地马拉,加入了海军陆战队,在阿富汗服役期间功勋卓著。我知道,他今天格外自豪,因为几天之后他的父亲沃尔特——他今天也在这里——也将入籍成为美国公民。沃尔特在哪里?啊,他就在那边。(笑声)很高兴见到你,沃尔特。(掌声)请欢迎一等兵拜伦•阿塞韦多带领我们宣读效忠誓词。

Right here.
就在这里。

MR. ACEVEDO: I’m nervous. (Laughter.)
阿塞韦多先生:我有点紧张。(笑声)

(The Pledge of Allegiance is said.)
(全体宣读效忠誓词)

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands,one Nation under God,indivisible,with liberty and justice for all.
我宣誓效忠美国国旗与它所代表的国家,一个在上帝之下、不可分割的、全民享有自由和公正的国家。

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Have a great Fourth of July. Congratulations to our newest citizens. Yay! (Applause.)
总统:谢谢你们大家。祝7月4日快乐。祝贺我们的新公民们。好耶!(掌声)