VOA慢速英语:Supreme Court Rules on Three Major Rights Issues

The United States Supreme Court made decisions on three major rights cases this week.
本周，美国最高法院对三大权利案件作出裁决。

On Monday the court released a decision on education policy for minorities. But, the high court chose not to give a final ruling on the policy known as affirmative action.
周一，法院公布了针对少数民族教育政策上的裁决。但是，高院选择了不作出最终裁决。

The case involves a young white woman, Abigail Fisher, who was rejected by the University of Texas. Her lawyers argued that universities should not be permitted to consider race when trying to accept a diverse class of students. They said that considering someone’s race in the admissions process violates their constitutional right to equal protection under the law.
这个案件涉及到一个年轻的白人女子，Abigail Fisher，她被得克萨斯大学拒绝录取了。她的律师认为，大学不应该被允许为了尝试建立一个多元化学生班级而考虑种族问题。他们说，在招生过程中考虑某个人的种族因素违反了受法律平等保护的宪法权利。

Seven of the nine justices voted to return the case to a lower court saying it had not fully studied the university’s actions.
九名大法官中的七人投票将案件发回下级法院并称其没有彻底研究大学的行为。

Opponents praised the Supreme Court for ordering the lower court to enforce a narrower version of the school’s affirmative action plan. Civil rights activists welcomed the decision because it did not cancel the policy.
反对者称赞最高法院责令下级法院收窄执行学校的平权法案方案。民权活动家对该判决表示欢迎，因为高等法院并没有取消该政策。

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court did cancel a part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Congress passed the law to ensure that African Americans in southern states could vote. The court decision ends federal supervision of election laws in states with a history of voter suppression.
周二，最高法院取消了《1965投票权法案》的部分内容。国会通过了该法案，以确保非裔美国人可以在南方各州投票。法院判决取消了对具有选民禁制历史的各州选举法的联邦监督。

The law was aimed at nine states and some cities and counties in seven other states. These states were required to seek approval from the Justice Department to make changes to their election laws. Congress has repeatedly extended the law, most recently in 2006.
该法案的目的是针对9个州和其它7个州中的一些县市。这些州需要寻求司法部批准其修改选举法。国会已经多次延长了该法律，最近的一次是在2006年。

A divided court ruled by a vote of five to four. In the majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that widespread violation of the rights of black voters no longer exists. The majority ruled that the method used to decide which areas require federal supervision violates the rights of states. It said Congress must decide on a better method.
意见不一致的最高法院最终以5：4的票数做出裁决。在多数派看来，首席大法官John Roberts写道，现在不再存在普遍侵犯黑人选民权利的情况。多数派裁定，用于决定哪些地区需要联邦监督的办法违法了各州的权利。它说，国会需要一个更好的办法。

Several states announced they would begin new voting requirements that had been blocked by the Justice Department soon after the ruling.
裁决后不久就有几个州宣布，他们将开始启用曾被司法部禁止的投票规定。

Cherilyn Infill is with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.
Cherilyn Infill是全国有色人种协进会法律辩护基金的一员。

“Make no mistake about what has happened."
“请不要误解了所发生的事情。”

Speaking to a crowd near the court, she said the court has decided that it stands in a better position than Congress to determine how to protect against voting discrimination.
在法院附近对人群讲话时，他说法院认为自己在确定如何防止投票歧视上比国会更有优势。

“The 15th amendment to the constitution makes clear that it is Congress that has that power.”
“宪法第15修正案明确指出，国会拥有这种权力。”

On Wednesday morning, a different crowd waited outside the court building. Supporters of same-sex marriage cheered when the Supreme Court canceled a federal and a state law on the issue.
周三上午，一群不同的人等候在法院大楼外面。当最高法院取消了联邦和州在这一问题上的法律后，同性婚姻的支持者欢呼雀跃。

The court said the 1996 federal law called the Defense of Marriage Act violated the rights of same-sex couples. The court said that the government could not prevent same-sex couples from getting the same tax, health and retirement benefits as traditional husbands and wives. Supporters of the laws promised to continue efforts to limit marriage to legal unions of one man and one woman.
法院认为，1996年婚姻保护法这一联邦法侵犯了同性伴侣的权利。法院称，政府不能阻止同性伴侣得到和传统夫妇相同的税收、医疗和退休福利。该法支持者承诺，将继续努力把婚姻限制为一男一女的合法结合。