A memorial service was held on Sunday, January 4th, 2015, in honor of Wenjian Liu, an NYPD officer who was killed, along with his partner Rafael Ramos, on December 20th, 2014. The mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio, was one of the people who delivered a eulogy in memory of Liu. As he was making his speech, numerous police officers outside of the funeral home turned their backs on de Blasio to demonstrate their disdain for the mayor and his apparent lack of support for the police officers during a time of anti-police protests.
De Blasio begins his speech by describing the sadness that New York City is experiencing after losing two admirable NYPD officers. He offers his condolences to Liu's family and to his "second family," the other officers with whom he served. He then goes on to emphasize that it is in times like these when people realize exactly what kind of work police officers do and how devastating it is when one of these good people is lost. Following this, de Blasio relates how Liu was a great representation of what it means to live "the American dream" as he had moved with his parents at the age of 12 to the United States from China to find just that and to help others along the way. Within this description, de Blasio mentions several examples of instances, provided by Liu's family and close friends, that show Liu's compassion and decency. He ends this by relating how Liu lived his life to a lesson taught by Buddha- "resolutely train yourself to attain peace"- and making the remark that everyone should follow this model as well. All of these examples and good words that de Blasio puts in about Liu appeal to pathos and emphasize the sadness of losing such a great man.
The mayor concludes his speech by discussing the tolerance in New York City: "...a place where people of diverse backgrounds, and occupations, and races, and creeds have lived together in harmony." He recognizes that the past few weeks have been a time when that harmony has been challenged. Finally, he departs with the wish that this new year may be a time when we rededicate ourselves to the "great New York traditions of mutual understanding and living in harmony" and work together to attain peace.
De Blasio begins his speech by describing the sadness that New York City is experiencing after losing two admirable NYPD officers. He offers his condolences to Liu's family and to his "second family," the other officers with whom he served. He then goes on to emphasize that it is in times like these when people realize exactly what kind of work police officers do and how devastating it is when one of these good people is lost. Following this, de Blasio relates how Liu was a great representation of what it means to live "the American dream" as he had moved with his parents at the age of 12 to the United States from China to find just that and to help others along the way. Within this description, de Blasio mentions several examples of instances, provided by Liu's family and close friends, that show Liu's compassion and decency. He ends this by relating how Liu lived his life to a lesson taught by Buddha- "resolutely train yourself to attain peace"- and making the remark that everyone should follow this model as well. All of these examples and good words that de Blasio puts in about Liu appeal to pathos and emphasize the sadness of losing such a great man.
The mayor concludes his speech by discussing the tolerance in New York City: "...a place where people of diverse backgrounds, and occupations, and races, and creeds have lived together in harmony." He recognizes that the past few weeks have been a time when that harmony has been challenged. Finally, he departs with the wish that this new year may be a time when we rededicate ourselves to the "great New York traditions of mutual understanding and living in harmony" and work together to attain peace.