就在兩個月前，馬丁·路德·金遭到暗殺。美國的城市如同在燃燒。肯尼迪總統被槍殺。
George （“segregation forever”）Wallace was on his way togarnering 10 million votes and carrying five southern states. RichardNixon was well on his way to becoming president.
喬治·華萊士（堅決擁護種族隔離製度的美國政治家）馬上要獲得一千萬張選票和南方5個州選民的支持。理查德·尼克鬆即將成為美國總統。
America was still mired in bigotry.
美國仍深陷在偏激與固執中不可自拔。
I remember a classmate who was dating a black girl being spiton in a movie theater. The Supreme Court had only the year beforestruck down state laws against interracial marriage.
我仍然記得，我的一個同學因為和黑人女孩約會而在電影院被人吐口水。而最高法院在一年之前才剛剛廢除了各州禁止跨種族通婚的法律。
My entire graduating class of almost 800 contained only sixyoung black men and four Hispanics.
我的整個年級近800名畢業生中隻有6個黑人男生和4個拉美裔同學。
I remember the girlfriend of another classmate almost dyingfrom a back-alley abortion，because safe abortions were almostimpossible to get.
我仍然記得，我另一個同學的女朋友幾乎死在非法墮胎手術中，因為安全的墮胎渠道幾乎不可能找到。
I remember a bright young woman law school graduate in tearsbecause no lawfirmwould hire her because she was a woman.
我仍然記得，一個聰明的法學院女孩在畢業時痛哭，因為沒有一家法律事務所願意雇用她，僅僅因為她是個女生。
I remember one of my classmates telling me in anguish that hewas a homosexual，fearing he"d be discovered and his career ruined.
我仍然記得，我的一個同學非常痛苦地告訴我他是一個同性戀，他非常害怕別人會發現這一點，從而毀掉他的職業前程。
The environmental movement had yet not been born. Two-thirdsof America"s waterways were unsafe for swimming or fishingbecause of industrial waste and sewage.
那個時候，環境保護運動還沒有萌芽。美國三分之二的水源由於受到工業廢料和汙水的汙染，不能進行遊泳和釣魚。
I remember rivers so polluted they caught fire. When theCuyahoga River went up in flames Time Magazine described it as theriver that“oozes rather than flows，”“in which a person “does notdrown but decays.”
我仍然記得，河水被嚴重汙染到可以著火。當庫亞哈噶河（美國俄亥俄州境內的一條河流，60年代時因受到石油工業的汙染多次起火）發生火災後，時代雜誌形容它“與其說是在流淌，不如說是在緩慢滲透”，人掉進去“不是淹死而是腐爛”。
In those days，universal health insurance was a pipe dream.
那個時候，全民醫療保險完全是白日做夢。
It all seemed pretty hopeless. I assumed America was going tohell.
一切看起來都那麼令人絕望。我本以為美國會走向地獄般的未來。