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Of course, the story of our nation is not without its difficult chapters. In many ways—over many years—we have struggled to advance the promise of these principles to all of our people, and to forge a more perfect union. We fought a very painful civil war, and freed a portion of our population from slavery. It took time for women to be extended the right to vote, for workers to win the right to organize, and for immigrants from different corners of the globe to be fully embraced. Even after they were freed, African Americans persevered through conditions that were separate and not equal, before winning full and equal rights.
当然，我国的历史也并非没有困难的篇章。在很多方面，在很长的时间里，我们要通过斗争去实现这些原则对全体人民的承诺，缔造一个更趋完善的联邦。我们曾打过一场很痛苦的内战，将我国的一部分人口从奴隶制中解放出来。妇女获得投票权、劳工赢得组织权、来自世界各地的移民受到完全的接纳——这些都是经过了一段时间的努力才实现的。非洲裔美国人即使在获得自由后依然生活在被隔离和不平等的条件下，他们经过不懈努力才最终赢得全面、平等的权利。
None of this was easy. But we made progress because of our belief in those core principles, which have served as our compass through the darkest of storms. That is why Lincoln could stand up in the midst of civil war and declare it a struggle to see whether any nation, conceived in liberty, and "dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal" could long endure. That is why Dr. Martin Luther King could stand on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and ask that our nation live out the true meaning of its creed. That's why immigrants from China to Kenya could find a home on our shores; why opportunity is available to all who would work for it; and why someone like me, who less than 50 years ago would have had trouble voting in some parts of America, is now able to serve as its President.
所有这些都不曾轻而易举。但是，由于我们坚信这些核心原则，我们取得了进步，这些原则指引我们冲过了最黑暗的风暴。这就是为什么林肯能在内战中挺身而出并宣布，这是一场考验一个孕育于自由之中、“忠实于人人生而平等这一原则”的国家能否永存的斗争。这也是为什么马丁·路德·金博士能够站立在林肯纪念堂的台阶上，要求我们的国家实践自身信仰的真正含义。这也是为什么来自中国或肯尼亚的各国移民能够在我国的土地上安家；为什么所有努力寻求机会的人都能获得机会；为什么像我这种在不到50年前在美国的某些地方连投票都会遇到困难的人，现在能够出任这个国家的总统的原因。
