Prompt: The Blue Wall of Silence is an unwritten moral code, among police officers, that essentially states that no officer is to report any acts of deviance, brutality, corruption or misconduct that their fellow officers may commit. Those in law enforcement may see this unwritten rule as a form of brotherhood and honor. However, this wall of silence also acts as a wall of deviance, in which officers allow their colleagues to commit unlawful acts. Is there a specific line that has to be crossed to determine a “rat” from a police officer who is serving their duty and enforcing the law?
Background: Michael Dowd worked for the New York City Police Department for precinct 75 for ten years and five months. Throughout his career, he committed extortion, narcotics trafficking, protection of drug operations, engaging in personal drug use, committed thefts and admitted to the courts that he had committed hundreds of crimes. At the beginning of it all, East New York in the late 80s was extremely poor and there were about 3,500 murders a year and a lot of crime. The 75 was known to be the deadliest precinct in the country, leading the city in homicides and shootings; the calls did not stop (Russel, 2015). After about a year on the force Dowd started committing acts of corruption. The first bribe he took was from an 18 year old driver who had no license, registration or license plates. The deal was to leave a few hundred dollars on the seat of Officer Dowd’s car, in exchange for
1. How does Bowden describe the wall? What language does he use in characterizing it? Analyze his choice of words when discussing the border wall.
In the story “Blue against White”, the author, Jeannette C. Armstrong, writes about a native girl coming home to her reserve after spending time in the city. The topic of memories is very apparent throughout the story as the main character, Lena, is reminiscing through most of it. Whether we like it or not, life always goes on and sometimes, there are things we don’t really pay attention to until it’s too late. Memories can help to keep the past alive and get us through some pretty tough situations. In the story, Lena thinks about her time in the city and how she got through it with her memories of the place she grew up in. Armstrong represents her idea of memory of the past in her text with the use of the blue door as a symbol, comparing
Michael Dowd, dubbed the name “Dirtiest Cop in New York City”, prospered enough than any US President’s annual salary, calculating by the amount of money he stole in robberies he and his partner, Kenny Eurell, planned in their patrol car to the eight grand a week they were paid from a drug gang leader. He and his fellow partners-in-crime would use police tactics to rob dealers. Certainly, Dowd was not only intelligent in his mischievous ways, but he had balls and didn’t rat out on his partners, which made him fearless of the consequences that might follow. He may be nervous at times, but was never feared of being caught. He was determined, demanding, obnoxious, greedy individual, and would go after anyone that threatened him and owed him money.
Serpico testified against fellow police officers, breaking the “blue code of silence”, which is an unwritten rule among police officers not to report fellow officer wrongdoings, to the Knapp Commission on May 10, 1971. "I hope that police officers in the future will not experience the same frustration and anxiety that I was subjected to for the past five years at the hands of my superiors because of my attempt to report corruption. We create an atmosphere in which the honest officer fears the dishonest officer, and not the other way around. The problem is that the atmosphere does not yet exist in which honest
I thought that Silent Ears, Silent Heart was an excellent book. It really gave you a full prospective of what a family and a person has to go through living a life without being able to hear sound it also helps you realize what someone has to go through that can’t hear what is going on around them. The book starts off with a couple named the Clines there’s Mr. Cline who is Jack who runs his own multimillion dollar business in a glass production. His dream is to have his son at his side and follow in his footsteps and run the family business someday. Then there’s Mrs. Cline who is Margret who is a stay at home wife that is waiting the arrival of their child.
The book I would like to tell you about is called Among the Hidden. The author of this book is Margaret Peterson Haddix. In this book, there is a boy named Luke Garner who has never been able to leave his backyard. He has only been able to quickly peak through blinds for fear of being seen. Until the day the workers started cutting the trees down, Luke was able to experience a little fresh air while rough-housing with his brothers in their isolated backyard farmland. The reason for this is because of the population law. The government believed that there wasn’t enough food to feed the growing population, so they made the law that there is only a maximum of two children allowed in each family. That meant that Luke was an illegal third
Chaim Potok uses many different types of silence in The Chosen. He utilizes many of them to facilitate illustrating the characters’ beliefs and emotions. The silence helps to buoy the imagery and strength of the emotions and assists in adding depth to the moment. Each silence also helps to clarify the messages that pass through the story, making them sharper and additionally refined.
C.S. Lewis produced a book that conveys vivid scenery, relatable characters, and a vague but detailed plot that gave rise to a novel with wonderful clarity. Out of the Silent Planet is an account of the voyage of Ransom, a linguist, who is kidnapped and taken to another planet, Malacandra (Mars). Where he learns that Thulcandra (Earth) is called the silent planet because there has been no communication from it in years. On the voyage there he is led to believe he will be sacrificed. Instead, the creatures that inhabit the other world reveal extraordinary secrets about the nature of man and the universe to him. Ransom is ultimately sent back to Thulcandra with the two earthlings who had
What is slavery and where does it stem from. The Webster’s dictionary definition of slavery means “the condition of a slave; the state of entire subjection of one person to the will of another”. The African slave trade started way back in the 1400’s from the west coast of Africa1stAfrica entered into a unique relationship with Europe that led to the devastation and depopulation of Africa, but contributed to the wealth and development of Europe. From then until the end of the 19th century, Europeans began to establish a trade for African captives. Why would people do such a thing what were they to gain from such wickedness? Timothy 6:10”For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.
Could the killing of an unborn disabled child be considered acceptable in today’s society? Selective infanticide is a very controversial topic that many have argued about over past years. In her article “Unspeakable Conversations” disabilities activist and lawyer Harriet McBryde Johnson demonstrates her viewpoint on this issue. She writes this article as a story, with herself being the narrator. It follows her journey as she feuds with Peter Singer, a Princeton University professor, who has an opposing perspective regarding the killing of unborn disabled children. With this in mind, Johnson reveals her point of view using the strategy of a Rogerian argument and the rhetorical elements of
“We must tell people, Corrie. We must tell them what we learned,” said Betsie. The Hiding Place, by Corrie ten Boom, is the biography of a woman in Holland during the Holocaust. The book starts out in 1937, in Haarlem, Holland. Corrie and her family were Christians who hid Jews from persecution by the German soldiers. Corrie was forced to make decisions and take actions all throughout different periods in her life. When her mother fell ill, she learned to care for someone who couldn’t do anything for her. During the time when the family was hiding the Jews, she was forced to be brave and strong. Finally, when her family was taken to the concentration camps, Corrie, with the help of her sister
In policing, officers are given the role to serve and protect citizens, and carry out justice. In addition, are expected by society to protect lives and property. When a police officer fails to comply with these general principles, he or she is considered deviant. Corruption and misconduct have been present in society since the beginning of policing. An infamous case in American policing history is the Michael Dowd case, where a former NYPD officer was convicted for engaging in numerous criminal activities. When analyzing the film The Seven Five, several aspects in the case can be applied to concepts found in the Introduction to Policing book, including, police culture, personality, minorities in policing, ethics, and patrol operations.
In the essay “The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action”, Audre Lorde described the cause and meaningful that why we need to break the silence. Lorde believes silences will not protect ours, so people need to make contact to build a communication in order to bridge our difference. People exist difference due to the different race, gender, and sexual orientation. Then, keeping silence also a kind of fear that people afraid to face contempt, censure, judgment, re cognition, challenge, or annihilation. Lorde wrote this essay due to her was told by two doctors that she might have to have breast surgery because her tumor might malignant. Then, there was a three-week period between the telling and the actual breast surgery, so she started to reorganization her entire life. She realized that death is the final silence, and she needs to speak herself because silence cannot protect her as a Black lesbian poet. Honestly, I am curious about that the
The Voices is directed by Marjane Satrapi and written by Michael R. Perry released in 2015. The movie was focusing on the importance of mental illness, crime and even romance. It touches comedy to horror. There were mixed reviews in the public getting both good and bad reception.
Police officers may or may not actively support noble-cause corruption. Sometimes when officers become aware of corrupt or illegal forms of misconduct, they are inclined to “turn a blind eye or look the other way.” It puts their fellow officers in a very difficult position, most officers tend to think that if they turn away and ignore it and do not acknowledge what is going on that they are not part of the misconduct or illegal activity. Most