同性恋应受法律保护

Striking a nerve: Speaking outside the State House in Nairobi, Kenya, on Saturday night, President Barack Obama (left) criticized Kenya for its treatment of homosexuals. In response, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta (right) said gay rights are a 'non-issue' in his country

BACKGROUND:

美国总统奥巴马周六晚上在一个新闻发布会上，与肯尼亚总统交流，并就同性恋权利发表个人观点，下面一起来看看吧~~

CONTENT：

With a warm smile, fond reflections on his family's ties to Kenya and even a 'birther' joke, he charmed the African nation's leaders on Saturday night.

But at one point, President Barack Obama struck a nerve.

Speaking at a press conference outside Nairobi's State House, Obama condemned Kenya for its treatment of homosexuals, comparing discriminating against gays to treating people differently due to race and saying that 'law-abiding' citizens should not be punished for loving a particular person.

'As an African-American in the United States I am painfully aware of what happens when people are treated differently,' he said. 'When you start treating people differently, not because of any harm they are doing, but because they are different, that's the path whereby freedoms begin to erode.

'[If] somebody is a law-abiding citizen... the idea they are going to be treated differently or abused because of who they love is wrong. Full stop.'

In response, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was standing on a stage alongside Obama, declared that gay rights are a 'non-issue' in Kenya.

KEY POINTS:

fond 美好的

charm 用魅力取悦

strike a nerve 触及要害，与hit a nerve同义

Nairobi 内罗比，肯尼亚首都

Kenya 肯尼亚，东非国家

homosexual 同性恋

gay 同性恋，尤指男性

law-abiding 守法的

whereby 凭借

erode 削弱

non-issue 不是重要的事

注释：birther一词专门为美国总统奥巴马出现。自从他当选总统后就有人认为他实际是个穆斯林，篡改了出生证明才当上美国总统。有此想法的人被称为“birther”