Online Class Notes (Li)[R]

Vocabulary

riot: a noisy, violent, and uncontrolled public meeting 暴乱

eg. Riots have spread across the US over the killing of a black man.

reverberate (1): to repeat several times like an echo 回响

eg. Her voice reverberated around the room.

reverberate (2): having an effect on everyone/groups in a place 震撼；产生广泛影响

eg. The killing reverberated across the world.

eg. The loss of innocent lives reverberated across the local community.

plead: beg 乞求，恳求

eg. He pleaded to the police to not arrest his wife.

eg. The shameless couple were on their knees pleading for forgiveness.

loot: stealing during a violent event 抢劫，洗劫

eg. Riots and looting occurred across the US for 2 weeks.

condemn: to criticize strongly 谴责，指责

eg. The police were condemned for their inaction

eg. The Opposition has condemned the government’s proposed tax increases.

unprecedented(adj): never having happened or existed in the past 史无前例的，空前的；绝无仅有的

eg. Unemployment has reached an unprecedented level.

eg. She took the unprecedented step of revealing the truth about the situation.

compel: to force someone to do something 强迫；逼迫；迫使

eg. He was compelled to speak up in the meeting.

eg. Due to the economic crises, businesses are compelled to downsize.

accountable: to be responsible for sth 应负责任的

eg. She is held accountable for committing fraud.

eg. Politicians should be accountable to the public who elected them.

The killing of George Floyd in the city of Minneapolis on May the 25th has reverberated across the world. Mr Floyd, a handcuffed black man, died after a police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes, even after he was pleading for air and then stopped moving. Days of rioting, looting and clashes with police followed as citizens vented their anger over the killing. The protests have escalated across America’s major cities. There have also been protests outside U.S. embassies across the world. The killing of Mr Floyd led the African Union Commission to take the unprecedented step of condemning what it called “murder” and the “continuing discriminatory practices against black citizens”.

Many U.S. embassies in Africa have taken the unusual step of issuing critical statements. The news publication “Foreign Policy” wrote: “Several U.S. diplomats said it is rare for U.S. embassies abroad to weigh in on domestic U.S. issues. But in this case, the embassies were compelled to respond after seeing how African leaders reacted to Floyd’s death with anger and dismay.” The U.S. ambassador to Congo wrote: “I am profoundly troubled by the tragic death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The Justice Department is conducting a full criminal investigation as a top priority. Security forces around the world should be held accountable. No one is above the law.”

Pronunciation

reverberated – re-ver-buh-ray-ted

riot – ry-yat