许多美国人将目光投向了北方邻国——加拿大，希望在这里找到一个“避风港”。罗伯特·阿普加-泰勒和他的丈夫罗布就是其中之一，他们因为对美国政治的担忧而离开家乡。当他们越过美加边境时，满心欢喜地拍照留念，憧憬在加拿大开始新生活。
但他们很快发现，这条“避难”之路远非坦途。面对高昂的外国买家税、繁琐的移民程序、以及身份认同带来的职场困境，他们不仅没有获得想象中的安全感，甚至连基本的生活和医疗都成了问题。这篇报道揭示了一个残酷的现实：加拿大并非所有人的避难所，即使拿着美国护照，也可能面临重重挑战。
罗伯特·阿普加-泰勒清晰地记得，他和丈夫罗伯特·泰勒（Rob）越过边境进入加拿大的那一天，他们逃离祖国美国不断变化的政治气候，希望在加拿大过上更安全的生活。
Robert Apgar-Taylor vividly remembers the day he and his husband, Robert Taylor, crossed the border into Canada, fleeing the changing political climate in their native United States in hopes of a safer life in Canada.
vividly (adv.): 清晰地，生动地。
crossed the border：越过边境。
fleeing (v.): 逃离。
in hopes of：希望，怀着……的希望。
“我们在边境拍了张照片，那是冬天。”阿普加-泰勒说：，“我们穿着格子衬衫和帽子，背后是一辆搬家卡车，手里拿着移民文件。我们非常激动。”
"We took a picture at the border. It was winter," said Apgar-Taylor. "We wore our plaid shirts and hats, and showed our immigration papers with the moving truck behind us. We were so excited."
plaid shirts：格子衬衫。
moving truck：搬家卡车。
immigration papers：移民文件。
为了避免混淆，本故事将阿普加-泰勒的丈夫称为罗布。
To avoid confusion, this story refers to Apbar-Taylor's husband as Rob.
这对夫妇于 2022 年 12 月移居加拿大。
The couple made their move to Canada in December 2022.
阿普加-泰勒是基督教联合教会的前牧师，他刚刚被任命为安大略省伦敦的加拿大联合教会教区牧师。
Apgar-Taylor, a former reverend at the United Church of Christ, had just been appointed to a United Church of Canada parish in London, Ont.
reverend (n.): 牧师。
United Church of Christ：基督教联合教会。
had just been appointed：刚刚被任命，过去完成时的被动语态，强调发生在过去某个时间点之前的动作。
parish (n.): 教区。
Ont.: 安大略省的缩写。
他说：“当特朗普（2016 年）首次当选时，我们考虑过离开，但我们觉得我们反应过度了，事情不会变得那么糟糕。”“但事实证明，情况和我们想象的一样糟糕。”
"When Trump was first elected [in 2016], we thought about leaving, but we thought we were overreacting and things couldn't get that bad," he said. "But things turned out to be just as bad as we imagined."
overreacting (v.): 反应过度。
turned out to be：结果是，原来是。
just as bad as：和……一样糟糕。
自特朗普于 2017 年开始他的第一个任期以来，这对夫妇痛苦地看着，对他们国家不断变化的政治气候越来越感到不安。
Since Trump began his first term in 2017, the couple watched with anguish and became increasingly uncomfortable with the changing political climate in their country.
first term：第一个任期。
watched with anguish：痛苦地看着。
increasingly (adv.): 越来越。
political climate：政治气候。
首先，在特朗普 2017 年就职典礼后仅几个小时，白宫网站上一个专门针对 2SLGBTQ+ 社区的页面被删除了。
First, there was the removal of a page dedicated to the 2SLGBTQ+ community from the White House website, just hours after Trump's inauguration in 2017.
removal (n.): 移除。
dedicated to：专门针对。
2SLGBTQ+：双灵、女同性恋、男同性恋、双性恋、跨性别、酷儿/疑性恋等群体的统称。
inauguration (n.): 就职典礼。
2020 年，反种族主义抗议者在总统官邸外遭到橡皮子弹和催泪瓦斯的暴力镇压。一年后，美国国会大厦遭到袭击。
In 2020, there was the violent repression of anti-racism protesters with rubber bullets and tear gas outside the president's residence. The attack on the U.S. Capitol came a year later.
violent repression：暴力镇压。
anti-racism protesters：反种族主义抗议者。
rubber bullets：橡皮子弹。
tear gas：催泪瓦斯。
U.S. Capitol：美国国会大厦。
“我不敢相信宪法和公民社会的保障措施正在被拆除，而且人们盲目地追随[唐纳德·特朗普]，”当时在华盛顿特区担任警察的罗布回忆道。"
I couldn't believe that the Constitution and the safeguards of civil society were being dismantled and that people were blindly following [Donald Trump]," recalls Rob, a Washington, D.C., police officer at the time.
Constitution (n.): 宪法。
safeguards (n.): 保障措施。
civil society：公民社会。
being dismantled：正在被拆除，被动语态的进行时，强调正在发生的过程。
blindly following：盲目追随。
recalls (v.): 回忆。
作为一名公开的同性恋牧师，阿普加-泰勒说，他在马里兰州工作时收到了死亡威胁。
As an openly gay pastor, Apgar-Taylor said he received a death threat while working in Maryland.
openly gay：公开的同性恋者。
pastor (n.): 牧师。
received a death threat：收到了死亡威胁。
但对这对夫妇的最后一击发生在 2022 年，当时美国最高法院推翻了“罗伊诉韦德案”（Roe v. Wade），该案保障了全国范围内的堕胎权。
But the final blow for the couple came in 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed the right to abortion nationwide.
final blow：最后一击，致命一击。
U.S. Supreme Court：美国最高法院。
struck down：推翻，废除，是 strike down 的过去式。
the right to abortion：堕胎权。
nationwide (adv.): 全国范围内。
阿普加-泰勒回忆道：“听到这个消息 15 秒后，罗布看着我，说：‘够了。我们必须离开。’”
"Fifteen seconds after hearing the news, Rob looked at me and said, 'That's enough. We have to go,'" Apgar-Taylor recalled.
Becoming Canadian not so simple
成为加拿大人没那么简单
尽管阿普加-泰勒和劳伦斯现在正在与家人一起享受他们在加拿大新的避风港，但获得加拿大永久居留权的挑战还远未结束。
While Apgar-Taylor and Lawrence are now enjoying their new Canadian refuge with their families, the challenge of obtaining Canadian permanent residency is far from over.
refuge (n.): 避难所，避风港。
far from over：远未结束。
两人都持有与加拿大联合教会相关的工作签证。他们原本期望在加拿大生活六个月到两年后获得永久居留权，但渥太华最近降低了永久移民门槛，挫败了他们的计划。
Both men have work visas linked to the United Church of Canada. They expected to obtain permanent residency after six months to two years in Canada, but Ottawa's recent lowering of permanent immigration thresholds thwarted their plans.
work visas：工作签证。
linked to：与……相关。
lowering (v.): 降低。
permanent immigration thresholds：永久移民门槛。
thwarted (v.): 挫败，阻挠。
例如，阿普加-泰勒和罗布仍然无法成为房主，因为在他们获得永久居留权之前，他们必须在安大略省缴纳 25% 的外国买家税。
For example, Apgar-Taylor and Rob still haven't been able to become homeowners because until they obtain permanent residency, they will have to pay a 25 per cent foreign buyers' tax in Ontario.
这种情况迫使阿普加-泰勒将前列腺癌手术推迟了三个月，因为当时这对夫妇不得不紧急搬出他们租住的公寓。
The situation forced Apgar-Taylor to postpone his prostate cancer surgery for three months, when the couple had to urgently move out of their rented apartment.
forced...to...：迫使……做……。
postpone (v.): 推迟。
prostate cancer surgery：前列腺癌手术。
urgently (adv.): 紧急地。
“我不能同时做手术和搬家。”他说：“我好崩溃。”
"I couldn't have surgery and move at the same time," he said. "I was devastated."
devastated (adj.): 崩溃的，极度震惊的。
至于他的丈夫，他不得不放弃执法生涯，现在在仓库上夜班。
As for his husband, he had to give up his career in law enforcement and now works nights in a warehouse.
As for：至于。
law enforcement：执法。
works nights：上夜班。
warehouse (n.): 仓库。
劳伦斯和他的妻子经常被迫分居两地，因为这位训练有素的助产士和超声技术员仍然无法获得在安大略省从事其领域工作的资格。
Lawrence and his wife are often forced to live far apart since the trained midwife and ultrasound technician still hasn't been able to get the qualifications to work in her field in Ontario.
live far apart：分居很远。
midwife (n.): 助产士。
ultrasound technician：超声技术员。
她每个月在美国度过几个星期，以便谋生。
She spends several weeks a month in the United States so she can earn a living.
劳伦斯说：“我们曾有段时间怀疑自己是否做出了正确的决定。”
"There were times when we wondered if we had made the right decision," said Lawrence.
wondered if：怀疑是否。
加拿大移民、难民和公民部在一份电子邮件声明中表示，移民处理时间“取决于各种因素，包括移民目标、文件复杂性、安全检查以及申请人响应信息请求的及时性。”
In an emailed statement, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada stated that immigration processing times "depend on various factors, including immigration targets, file complexity, security checks and the timeliness of applicants responding to requests for information."
depend on：取决于。
immigration targets：移民目标。
file complexity：文件复杂性。
security checks：安全检查。
timeliness (n.): 及时性。
responding to：响应。
'The door is closed'
“门关上了”
移民律师格雷格·威洛比从美国出生的客户那里听到了类似的故事，他们在试图移民加拿大时面临障碍。
Immigration lawyer Greg Willoughby has heard similar stories from U.S.-born clients who face barriers trying to immigrate to Canada.
immigrate to：移民到。
在他位于伦敦市中心的小办公室里，他经常接到美国人的电话，包括跨性别儿童的父母，他们试图逃避美国政府的政策。
From his small office in downtown London, he regularly gets calls from Americans, including parents of transgender children, who seek to escape the U.S. administration's policies.
downtown (adj.): 市中心的。
transgender children：跨性别儿童。
seek to escape：试图逃避。
威洛比说：“当特朗普首次当选时，我接到人们的电话，询问是否有针对美国人的具体移民选择，答案是‘没有’。”
"When Trump was first elected, I received calls from people asking if there were specific immigration options for Americans, and the answer is 'no,'" said Willoughby.
他指出，美国人必须通过渥太华设立的积分系统获得资格，以评估他们作为潜在移民候选人。
He pointed out that Americans must qualify through a points system set up by Ottawa to assess them as potential immigration candidates.
qualify through：通过……获得资格。
points system：积分系统。
set up by：由……设立。
“如果你不是 20 多岁或 30 多岁的年轻人，拥有加拿大学院或大学的学位，并且在加拿大有几年工作经验，你就无法获得足够的分数。”
"If you're not a young person in your 20s or 30s with a degree from a Canadian college or university and a few years of work experience in Canada, you won't be able to get enough points."
in your 20s or 30s：20 多岁或 30 多岁。
degree (n.): 学位。
他指出，越来越多的美国人正在转向人道主义和富有同情心的申请，尽管他们成功的机会很小。
He noted a growing number of Americans are turning to humanitarian and compassionate applications, though their chances of success are slim.
humanitarian and compassionate applications：人道主义和富有同情心的申请，是加拿大移民系统中的特殊申请类别。
chances of success：成功的机会。
slim (adj.): 渺茫的。
“这不再是越南战争，我们不再欢迎逃兵者。对于跨性别者也是如此。门是关着的。”
"It's not the Vietnam War anymore, and we no longer welcome draft dodgers. It's the same for transgender people. The door is closed."
draft dodgers：逃兵者，指逃避兵役的人。
the door is closed：门已经关上，比喻没有机会。
'A recovering American'
“一个正在康复的美国人”
尽管存在障碍，阿普加-泰勒、罗布和劳伦斯仍然对他们在加拿大的未来充满希望。
Despite the obstacles, Apgar-Taylor, Rob and Lawrence remain hopeful of their future in Canada.
“我叫罗布，我是一个正在康复的美国人，”这是阿普加-泰勒有时喜欢在布道中开场的方式。
"My name is Rob, and I'm a recovering American," is how Apgar-Taylor sometimes likes to open his sermons.
recovering (adj.): 正在康复的，用在这里是双关语，既指从某种创伤中恢复，也暗指脱离了“美国人”的身份。
sermons (n.): 布道，讲道。
在他们家的地下室里，这位牧师和他的丈夫凝视着墙上画的家谱上他们孩子和孙子孙女的照片。
In the basement of their home, the reverend and his husband contemplate the photos of their children and grandchildren in a family tree painted on the wall.
basement (n.): 地下室。
contemplate (v.): 凝视，沉思。
family tree：家谱，族谱。
罗伯特说：“我们每天都想念他们。”
"We miss them every day," said Robert.
两人都觉得返回美国对他们来说不是一个选择。
Both feel that returning to the United States is not an option for them.
阿普加-泰勒和罗布搬到伦敦的那一年，他们的两个朋友在家乡因性取向和性别认同而分别遭到袭击。
The year Apgar-Taylor and Rob moved to London, two of their friends were assaulted back home in separate attacks because of their sexual and gender identities.
assaulted (v.): 遭到袭击。
back home：在家乡。
separate attacks：分别遭到袭击。
sexual and gender identities：性取向和性别认同。
阿普加-泰勒说：“在你不必再屏住呼吸之前，你不会意识到你屏住了呼吸的程度。在加拿大的感觉就是这样。”
"You don't realize how much you're holding your breath until you don't have to hold it anymore. That's how it feels to be in Canada," said Apgar-Taylor.
holding your breath：屏住呼吸，这里是比喻，指生活在恐惧和压抑中。
That's how it feels：这就是……的感觉。
