Twenty years ago, Wenjian Liu’s parents came to the United States with their son and the American Dream.
They watched their child grow from a 12-year-old boy to an altruistic young man to a New York City police officer — a job that Liu had dreamed of.
On December 20, a gunman cut that dream short. But on Sunday, sea of police officers from across the country will make sure Liu won’t be forgotten.
Mourners wearing an array of different badges will gather for Liu’s funeral at 11 a.m. ET at Brooklyn’s Aievoli Funeral Home. Last weekend, Liu’s partner Rafael Ramos was laid to rest after both officers were shot in their squad car — apparently just because they were cops.
At Ramos’ funeral, Police Commissioner William Bratton promoted both men to the rank of detective, first grade.
Diversity and unity
The ceremonial burning of paper money and the melodic sounds of Buddhist chants marked Liu’s wake Saturday.
Under a mix of rain and snow, throngs of uniformed police officers and firefighters gathered in a sign of the diversity and unity.
Liu was 12 when his parents emigrated with him in 1994, coming to the United States from Canton, China. His police partner, Rafael Ramos, a New York native of Puerto Rican descent, was remembered last week with a massive outpouring at a Protestant church in Queens.
With the city and nation divided over the treatment of minorities by their brothers and sisters on the force, the lives of the two fallen officers more closely reflected the city’s diversity.
From protests to reverence
The police commissioner had one request for rank and file attending Liu’s funeral: Don’t carry out an “act of disrespect” against anyone, Bratton said in a memo obtained by CNN.
The message was directed at a large group that attended Ramos’ funeral last week and turned their backs on Mayor Bill de Blasio as he gave his eulogy.
Some officers accused the mayor of encouraging anti-police fervor due to his support of protests against police brutality. Tens of thousands had taken to the streets in the wake of the death of African-American man Eric Garner during an encounter with white officers.
Pat Lynch, head of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, has taken aim at de Blasio, even saying the mayor’s office was stained with the officers’ blood.
But for Sunday’s funeral, Bratton is putting his foot down at a potential repeat by some officers.
‘Grieving, not grievance’
“A hero’s funeral is about grieving, not grievance,” Bratton said. The last display put all NYPD officers in a bad light, he said.
“It stole the valor, honor and attention that rightfully belonged to the memory of detective Rafael Ramos’s life and sacrifice,” his memo read.
But he commiserated with the sentiments of many officers.
“As a cop, one who lived and worked through the assassination threats of the 1970s, I understand that emotions are high,” he said.
But on Saturday, several officers saluted de Blasio when he arrived for Liu’s wake.
The ambush
Ramos and Liu were sitting in their squad car in Brooklyn when Ismaaiyl Brinsley ambushed them with a gun on December 20. Brinsley shot himself to death in a nearby subway station.
The assailant had a lengthy rap sheet that included gun crimes. He then tweeted messages that he would kill police officers in the wake of the deaths of Garner and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.
Little did he know the accomplishments and service of the two men he killed.
Wenjian Liu
Liu’s family came to the United States from Canton, China, in search of a better life.
He majored in accounting in college, but he opted for a different path, joining the New York Police Department in 2007. He was proud to serve as an officer, his family said, using his Chinese-language skills whenever they were needed.
He got married in September and was looking forward to starting his own family.
Liu’s family described him as selfless in an interview given to the New York Daily News.
Holding back tears, his father said that as a young officer, Liu once bought a meal for someone he pulled over and then guiding him home, he told the Daily News.
His family was waiting for relatives to come from China.
Liu’s widow gave a brief statement on the day of Ramos’ funeral, thanking members of the community for their support and sending condolences to the Ramos family.
“This is a difficult time for both of our families,” Pei Xia Chen said, “but we will stand together and get through this together.”
Rafael Ramos
Ramos saw his work as a ministry and was posthumously appointed honorary NYPD chaplain.
He was just hours away from becoming a lay chaplain and graduating from a community-crisis chaplaincy program before his violent death.
He left behind a wife, Maritza, and two sons, Justin and Jaden.
Vice President Joe Biden, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, de Blasio and Bratton delivered eulogies at his funeral.
More than 25,000 police officers from across the country and Canada attended. Officers formed long chains holding hands in prayer.