《中英對照讀新聞》A school catches flak for telling girls they can’t say no if a boy asks them to dance－告訴女孩不能拒絕男生邀舞 校方挨批

菲律賓馬尼拉一所純女子的天主教學校，今年2月14日西洋情人節當天在一場反婦女暴力的活動中集體舞蹈。（歐新社）

◎張沛元

Kanesville Elementary School in Ogden, Utah, holds a sixth-grade dance on Valentine’s Day each year. The dance is intended to promote inclusion and kindness, and students have traditionally been told by their teachers to say yes when a classmate asks them to dance.

（美國）猶他州歐格登的坎斯維爾小學每年西洋情人節當天都會舉行小六生舞會，藉此鼓勵學童融入與和睦，傳統上老師會告訴學生，被同學邀舞時要說好。

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But times have changed, and some parents were angry when they got wind of the dance’s protocol this year.

但時代變了，而且在得知今年的舞會禮節後，部分學生家長火大了。

Natalie Richard was shocked when her sixth-grade daughter told her she couldn’t refuse a dance with a boy at the upcoming dance.

當娜塔莉．李察從念小六的女兒處得知，不能在即將到來的舞會中拒絕男生的邀舞時，她為此震驚不已。

At a time when parents are teaching kids they don’t need to hug a friend or even kiss their grandparents, there’s been a movement toward children maintaining control of their own bodies.

值此家長教導孩子沒有必要擁抱朋友或甚至親吻其祖父母的時代，孩童掌握對自己身體的主控權已蔚為運動。

To many parents, not being able to turn down a dance partner goes against that.

對許多家長來說，無法拒絕舞伴有違此一原則。

It "sends a bad message to girls that girls have to say ’yes’ － sends a bad message to boys that girls can’t say ’no,’" Richard said.

「此種女孩必須答應的作法，對女孩傳達一種不良訊息－－女孩不能說『不』，也對男孩傳達不良訊息。」李察說。

《新聞辭典》

catch/get/take flak：慣用語，遭到嚴厲批評。例句：She’s taken a lot of flak for her poor decisions.（她因為爛決定而慘遭批評。）

get wind of something：慣用語，聽到……的風聲；得知……秘密消息。例句：He doesn’t want his coworkers to get wind of the fact that he’s retiring.（他不想讓同事知道他即將退休。）

turn down：慣用語，拒絕（他人的請求或忠告等）。

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