2004-8-29
The Dutch established the first major European settlement in the
area. They called it New Amsterdam. Later, they gave New Amsterdam
to Britain as part of a peace treaty. The British renamed the colony
"New York." In the middle and late seventeen hundreds, New York
played an important part in the struggle for American independence.
VOICE ONE:
In the eighteen hundreds, millions of European immigrants arrived
in New York through Ellis Island, in New York Harbor. Today New
Yorkers represent almost every race and ethnic group on the planet.
They speak more than one hundred languages.
The last population count, in two thousand, found that forty-five
percent of New Yorkers were white. Blacks and Hispanics each
represented twenty-seven percent of the population. Ten percent of
New Yorkers were Asian. This adds up to more than one hundred
percent, because Hispanics can be of any race. Many of the Spanish
speakers in New York come from Puerto Rico.
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VOICE TWO:
Manhattan is known for its tall buildings. But there are also
places to enjoy nature, like Central Park. Central Park covers three
hundred forty hectares. There are walking paths, play areas for
children, a lake and a zoo.
The southern part of Manhattan, called Lower Manhattan, is the
financial center of the city. The Financial District includes Wall
Street, home to the New York Stock Exchange.
Manhattan also represents the cultural heart of the city. The
famous theaters of Broadway and the Lincoln Center for the
Performing Arts are there. New York City has about eighty museums;
most are in Manhattan. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has the
largest collection in America.
From Manhattan, many visitors take a boat to see the Statue of
Liberty in New York Harbor. The statue reopened to the public
recently. It was closed for security improvements after the
September eleventh attacks.
Visitors to New York also like to go up to the observation area
at the top of the Empire State Building. The Empire State Building
was completed in nineteen thirty-one. It has more than one hundred
floors. Until the early nineteen seventies, it was the tallest
building in the world.
VOICE ONE:
There are lots of places to shop in New York. Some of the finest
are along Fifth Avenue. Rockefeller Center is also on Fifth Avenue;
it is home to the Radio City Music Hall.
Other areas of Manhattan include Greenwich Village and Harlem.
Greenwich Village is popular with artists. Harlem is the traditional
center of African American life in New York.
And along the East River in Manhattan is a glass-covered building
with a lot of flags outside. This is the headquarters of the United
Nations.
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VOICE TWO:
Like Manhattan, Brooklyn is densely populated. Brooklyn has the
largest population of the five boroughs. Its two and one-half
million people live mainly in apartment buildings and houses lined
close together.
During the summer, many people visit Coney Island in Brooklyn.
There are swimming beaches along the Atlantic Ocean as well as rides
and other activities for families. Brooklyn also has a major museum,
the Brooklyn Art Museum.
In different parts of New York, there are areas of wealth, but
also poverty. Some of the poorest areas are in the South Bronx,
known for its public housing projects. Yet the Bronx also has
Fieldston, an area with large homes. The Bronx is also home to
cultural and educational centers.
VOICE ONE:
Queens has major industry along the East River. It also has the
two major airports in New York City: John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia.
The borough with the fewest people is Staten Island. In nineteen
sixty-four, the Verrazano Narrows bridge linked the island with
Brooklyn. But there is no bridge between Staten Island and
Manhattan. So people sail across on the Staten Island Ferry.
New York is also known for its underground trains. The first part
of the subway system opened one hundred years ago this October.
VOICE TWO:
New York has many of the same problems as other big cities. These
include problems with the public schools and the health care system
for the poor. Many new immigrants arrive in the city needing help.
Some people have the idea that New Yorkers are not very friendly
or helpful to others. Yet, after the September eleventh attacks,
people saw just the opposite. America's Big Apple won many new
friends. And now New York even hopes to win the Summer Olympics in
two thousand twelve.
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VOICE ONE:
Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by Caty
Weaver. I'm Steve Ember.
VOICE TWO:
And I'm Gwen Outen. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA
in VOA Special English.