On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks would not give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. Her simple act landed Parks in prison. But it also set off the Montgomery bus boycott. It lasted for more than a year, and kicked off the civil-rights movement. “The only tired I was, was tired of giving in,” said Parks.—— 2016 全国卷 阅读理解A
Boycott can be used as both a noun and a verb. As a verb, boycott means to refuse to do something as a form of protest. People who boycott something are often looking for social, economic or political change.
As a noun, the word boycott has a somewhat different meaning. People stop using goods or services during a boycott until changes are made.
In fact, that is just how the word entered the English language. It began with a man’s name.
Back in the mid-1800s, a young man named Charles Boycott (1832-1897) served in the British army. After retiring, he worked as a land agent for the owner of a large country estate (庄园) in Ireland.
At that time, Ireland was under British rule. It was Boycott’s job to collect money from tenant (佃户) farmers who grew crops on the estate.
The farmers demanded lower rents. Boycott refused. Not only did he refuse to lower their rents, he evicted (驱逐) some farmers, meaning he kicked them out of their homes.
All these issues — evictions, high rents and absentee landlords (在外地主) — caused a dispute between Boycott and the local community. In particular, Boycottclashed (打斗) with a man named Michael Davitt.
In 1879, Davitt founded a group called the Land League. The league organized Irish resistance to absent and abusive landlords. It sought to help tenant farmers by securing fair rents and other rights of occupancy.
Davitt suggested to the farmers that instead of attacking Captain Boycott, they should simply refuse to do business with him.
This form of protest proved very effective. Boycott’s workers and servants refused to carry out his orders. The crops in his fields went bad — they rotted on the vine — because nobody would harvest them. Reports even say some businesses would not take his money. The community turned their backon the Boycott family and they were forced to move.
By the end of 1880, some British newspapers began using Boycott’s name when reporting on a protest of unfair methods or actions. The usage quickly spread.
The term boycott crossed the Atlantic Ocean and landed in American newspapers. By the late 1880s, The New York Times was reporting on boycotts. The word was generally used to describe labor protests against businesses.
These days, consumers are able to use their buying power to boycott businesses they consider unethicalor abusive. Companies found to be mistreating their employees, breaking labor deals or polluting the environment can quickly find themselves in the middle of a boycott.
The origin of the word “boycott” serves as a reminder: treat people fairly. Otherwise, your last name may become a word people use when they protest.
