Officer Liu’s Funeral Will Blend Chinese And NYPD Traditions

In addition to being the classic, pomp-filled NYPD funeral drawing thousands of officers from across the country, Officer Wenjian Liu’s funeral at Aievoli Funeral Home this Sunday will incorporate Buddhist traditions – an indicator of how diverse the NYPD force has become.

The New York Times reports:

While the services last weekend for Officer Rafael Ramos, who died alongside Officer Liu in an ambush in Brooklyn on Dec. 20, were held at a church, Officer Liu will be honored at a funeral home with Buddhist monks praying. Mourners will burn ceremonial paper money and objects in front of his photograph — riches, according to Chinese custom, for the afterlife.

The Chinese ceremony is likely to be quiet and private, with few dignitaries or officers in attendance. NYPD funerals have historically been Roman Catholic affairs, and Lieutenant Tony Georgio told the New York Times, that while Liu is not the first Asian American officer to die in the line of duty, it is the only NYPD funeral he can recall to incorporate Chinese traditions.

Meanwhile, a union leader representing the highest ranking NYPD officers issued a memo Tuesday telling members not to turn their backs to Mayor Bill de Blasio at Officer Liu’s funeral as they did at the funeral of his partner Officer Rafael Ramos, a move that has been widely criticized as disrespectful to the mourning family.

“In this forum the appropriate protest is not a sign or turning away from mourners, or people the family has asked to speak, but rather cold, steely silence,” Captains Endowment Association President Roy Richter wrote Tuesday. “In the coming days and weeks you will be looked upon by many for guidance, leadership and advice at a time when many of our peers and officers under our care are deeply angry. Unfortunately, but understandably, this anger provided visual displays of back-turning at the funeral of Police Officer Ramos that caused pain for his loved ones.”

The memo was issued prior to a tense meeting between NYPD union leaders and the mayor Tuesday, during which they tried to hash out their differences – an effort that was unsuccessful, according to reports.