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vivarocksteady · 8 years ago

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[Brooklyn Nine-Nine] fic: Influence

Raymond and Kevin adopted Jake as a baby. Now Jake is 12 and just made friends with a little hooligan named Doug Judy, and Raymond is concerned.

Actually, he's outraged.

Fic below, or on AO3.

INFLUENCE

Raymond had anticipated a lot of headaches when Jacob entered his early teen years, but he expected most of them to be girl-related. Jacob had been afflicted with bone-deep crushes from the first days he started socializing with other children. Of course, Raymond knew fully well that Jacob could easily feel that way for another boy, but he wasn’t sure that’s what was happening here. This was almost like hero worship, and for Jacob to have hero worship for such an unsuitable boy was simply unbecoming for their family.

Jacob was intelligent, and between Kevin and Raymond, he was certainly brought up to be a critical thinker, to not follow silly trends, and to always do what was right. They had taken him out of private school when he said he was being bullied, but they knew the real story was that he had struck an older boy for using a slur against another student. At the public school, he had no such problems, and didn’t want for friends. Though, Raymond realized, his friends were almost exclusively girls, with the exception of Charles, who might as well have been a girl.

Maybe that was the problem — but with two fathers at home, why would Raymond have been worried about Jacob lacking a male presence in his life? If anything, a plethora of female friends was a good balance for the rather masculine household in which Jacob was growing.

Nevertheless, as soon as Jacob started seventh grade and told them there was an older boy in the class, who had been held back for two whole years (and Kevin had the good grace to keep his shocked face out of Jacob's line of sight) who was super cool (Raymond did not have the good grace to keep his scowl out of Jacob's line of sight), they knew they were in trouble.

The boy's name was Doug Judy, and as far as Raymond was concerned, he was nothing but trouble.

"Doug is soo cooool," Jacob continued over his meal, after regaling his fathers throughout dinner preparation about this new friend of his. He was twelve years old now, and late for a growth spurt, so he still kicked his feet out when he got excited about something. “He has a leather jacket and he knows how to drive a car, and he has a switchblade!”

“Good heavens,” Kevin said.

“Yeah, he’s awesome,” Jacob went on, obliviously. “At recess we went to Next Level, and Doug showed me how to get unlimited lives on Soul Calibur. We got up to Kratos!”

“Well.” Kevin lifted his wine glass and caught Raymond’s eye. “That is impressive.”

Raymond was not impressed.

After Jacob had gone to bed and they had enjoyed their nightcaps, Kevin patiently listened to Raymond illuminate all the reasons this Doug Judy was not a suitable friend for their son. “A switchblade carrying ruffian who loiters about game parlours? Unacceptable.”

To Raymond’s surprise and dismay, Kevin did not share his outrage. He patted Raymond’s hand condescendingly as they pulled up the covers. “All will be well. I’m sure you had your share of bad influences growing up.”

Raymond barked out a laugh. “When other children were concerned with picking up sticks and games of jack, I was busy mastering the works of Franz Liszt and attempting to solve the Black Dahlia. I had worthy hobbies, and suitable influences.”

“Well,” Kevin said in that maddeningly calm manner of his, the one that alternately enraged and aroused Raymond, “you weren't a normal child.”

“Neither is he!” Raymond retorted. Kevin gave him A Look and Raymond pursed his lips, unable to say I didn't mean it like that, but knowing that he probably should.

—

Raymond brought Jacob home when he found the squalling, six month old baby at a crime scene. His mother was naive, teenaged, and besotted with an older man who happened to be a drug dealer. She insisted that she loved her baby, but the house was in no shape for a child, especially not with the body of an overdose victim nearby.

It wasn't really her fault, the little voice that Raymond associated with Kevin said, but Raymond didn't usually have the luxury of listening to that voice when he was on duty.

Officer Jeffords was the first to express interest in adopting Jacob, and he was also the first to get the child to stop crying, cradling him in his large arms and making faces as he gently bounced around the precinct. Jacob smiled and laughed in Jeffords' arms, and only started crying again when Raymond held him.

Unfortunately, Jeffords was newly out of the academy, making a beat cop’s salary, and had only met his current girlfriend a month ago. Raymond was a sergeant, and had been "common law" married to Kevin for a few years now, though they had no legal rights. (They could’ve driven to Massachusetts to get married, but to only have an out-of-state marriage felt like a poor man’s version of marriage, and if they couldn't have the real thing, they weren't going to settle for a knock-off.)

Raymond would be lying if adoption wasn’t the first thing that crossed his mind when he met Jacob. Kevin had always wanted children, but Raymond had not entertained the thought, assuming it would always be off limits to him. However, the idea of another little soul at their table, in their home, in their lives, sparked an ache in a part of him he hadn’t realized was empty.

Kevin expressed a desire to adopt Jacob sight unseen, so Raymond started the paperwork. It was a longer process for them, gay and unmarried as they were, and Kevin suggested that getting married in Massachusetts might help their case. In the end, it didn’t, but they drove to Springfield and got that knock-off marriage, the first of many sacrifices they would make for their child.

It took about half a year to get custody of Jacob, but since they were both in positions of standing in the community, they were often able to visit Jacob in his foster home and take him for weekend stays. From the very beginning, Jacob was inquisitive and impulsive and wanted to touch everything in the world. Almost all their interactions involved Jacob reaching for candy, or a strange dog, or something on the floor, Raymond taking it away, and Jacob crying. It would set the tone for their whole relationship — Raymond denying Jacob, and Jacob not realizing that Raymond only wanted what was best for him.

—

Raymond felt that there must be a type of dramatic irony that would demand the incident happen when Kevin was out of town. Kevin would lecture him, probably, because it wasn’t ironic at all, but that didn’t make Raymond feel any less cosmically wronged. “It’s only ironic because you didn’t expect it,” Kevin would probably say, “but of course you should have expected it, because all children get into trouble.”

Holt children never got into trouble, and if Raymond expected anything, it was that his child would be a Holt.

Jacob and Doug Judy had been caught vandalizing the wall of the school. Since Kevin had spent two days at a conference at Wesleyan University, and was currently on the road home, the call came to Raymond while he was on duty at the precinct, and he had no choice but to leave work and collect his wayward child.

They had spray painted a riotous eyesore on the wall, and at least they were smart enough not to do it by the entrance, though perhaps smart was relative. It was non-representational, and the main declarative tag was illegible to Raymond, but he identified Jacob’s childish scrawl in the words ‘Dante Thunderstone’ running along the bottom of the piece. Kevin might have something to say about the folk art merits of Doug Judy’s work, but Raymond was a police officer, and all he saw was evidence of his child involved in a crime.

“Well, he’s got detention for a week, obviously,” the harried principal told Raymond. “But he’s never gotten in trouble before, you know, beyond just being a distraction in class. I’m sort of at a loss here.”

Raymond looked out the principal’s window at the two giggling boys sitting on the bench in the secretary’s office. “It was Doug Judy’s bad influence,” he intoned.

“Well, yeah,” the principal admitted. “But on the other hand, Doug’s behaviour has been much better since he became friends with Jake. His schoolwork, too. I don’t want to discourage that, so besides detention, I’m not really inclined to punish them any further.”

Raymond didn't quite agree — in his day, such a transgression would have automatically warranted a damn sight more discipline than just detention. However, Raymond wasn't the principal of this school, so he wasn't in charge, and all he could do was deal with Jacob in the privacy of their home.

Doug Judy was a heavyset boy a full foot taller than Jacob, with a round head and laughing eyes. Laughing, disconcertingly shrewd eyes. Raymond had encountered enough criminals in his career to discern from one look at their eyes whether they were hapless and dim, or smart and cunning. He had yet to discern which type of criminal was worse.

“Jacob, get your things,” Raymond said, in his I'm not entertaining any complaints from you voice, which, to Jacob, was the same as all his other voices. "We're going home."

"See you later, Jayman!" Doug Judy said flippantly. He and Jacob performed some elaborate, ridiculous secret handshake.

"Is someone coming to pick you up, Doug?" The principal asked from his doorway.

"Nah," said Doug Judy. "I'm just chillin’ like a villain."

Jacob snorted a laugh at that, which distressed Raymond, especially since it was almost exactly the same cute, little laugh that Kevin would snort when he read something amusing.

"Come along, Jacob," he fairly barked, and Jacob almost jumped. The boy might often tease his father for being a robo-cop, but he certainly responded when Raymond used his police sergeant persona around him.

Jacob was silent in the car ride home, which was fine with Raymond, because he knew as soon as they got in the door, Jacob would try to charm his way out of this situation. Which, of course, he did.

"Okay," Jacob said as he shrugged off his hooded sweatshirt, sounding for all the world like he was trying to sell Raymond a used car. "I know you're probably mad, but please keep in mind that it was only paint, and the wall was ugly.”

"What on earth were you thinking, tagging a wall like some common street rat? Everybody knows you are the child of a police sergeant, how do you think this reflects on me?”

"Oh come on," Jacob whined. "Graffiti's not a crime!"

"Yes, it is! It most categorically is!"

"Oh," Jacob had the shame at least to look a little chastened. "Well, it shouldn't be."

“And yet!” Raymond wagged a finger disapprovingly. “Don’t you think for a second that I would give you any special treatment, Jacob Holt-Cozner. If this happened off school grounds and you and that hooligan were arrested, I would not pull any strings.”

Jacob had the absolute gall to roll his eyes.

Punishing Jacob was always difficult, because the boy had some kind of biological imperative to argue, which frankly wasn't helped by Kevin's encouragement of the boy’s inquisitiveness. Jacob never accepted a punishment without a thorough detailing of why it was fair and just, and it was hard to take things away from him, since his attachment to games or objects was so fickle and fleeting.

“You’re grounded for two weeks.” Raymond advanced on Jacob, who stared back up at him, neither of them giving an inch. “And you are not to see that boy ever again,” he said.

“What?!” Jacob exploded. “You can’t tell me who I can be friends with!”

“I can and will,” Raymond retorted. “Doug Judy is a bad influence and I don’t want to hear about you hanging around with him anymore.”

“I don’t understand why you won’t give him a chance! You’re such a fascist!” Jacob had learned the word fascist a few months ago and had accused his fathers of being such no less than three times since. “You think you’re so much better than everyone else! This is bullshit!”

Then Raymond did one of the most embarrassingly cliche things he’d ever done in his life. He shouted: “Go to your room!”

Jacob emitted a wordless, enraged snarl. He stomped upstairs and slammed his door shut so hard that Cheddar, who was fast asleep after an invigorating walk with the girl they hired when Kevin went away, snapped awake with a confused whine.

Kevin arrived home half an hour later, oblivious to the drama and carrying hot apricot chicken tajine and lentil rice from Whole Foods, and cupcakes from his favourite Connecticut bakery. He found Raymond sitting in the study and scowling at a wall, which was his version of pacing and muttering maniacally.

“I should speak to him, but I’m not looking forward to his… pouting,” Raymond said after he told Kevin the story over brandy.

“He certainly is a champion pouter, that son of ours,” Kevin agreed. “I’ll talk to him.”

—

Kevin sneaked a cupcake up to Jacob’s bedroom, Cheddar clambering up the stairs behind him. He knocked on Jacob’s door and slowly peered in. Jacob sat up from where he was flopped on the bed.

“Hey, Pop,” Jacob said miserably. “Hi, Cheddar.” The corgi toddled over and leapt up into Jacob’s bed and shoved her face in his face, making him laugh.

“Your father is quite upset,” Kevin said as he put the cupcake on Jacob’s desk and kneeled on the floor besides the bed. “What’s this all about?”

“Dad’s being a jerk! He won’t let me hang out with Doug!”

“I see. Is this the Doug that encouraged you to graffiti the school wall?”

Jacob was silent for a second. “He’s not bad,” he protested weakly.

“We’re worried, Jacob,” Kevin said. “You met this boy only recently and you’ve seem to become friends with him at the expense of everything else. We haven’t heard anything about Charles or Gina in a long time. It rather reminds us of your little crush on Jenny Gildenhorn.”

“Oh,” Jacob said, running his fingers through Cheddar’s fur. The biggest friend fight in his life had been when he neglected Charles and Gina in favour of trailing around Jenny Gildenhorn, carrying her books and doing whatever she said.

It would have been cute if Jenny hadn’t been a spoiled little brat, Kevin thought. Gina felt much the same way, and let Jacob know with her personal brand of devastatingly caustic words in inappropriately public settings, Charles sobbing behind her. The whole melodrama was apparently the talk of sixth grade, and regrettably resulted in Jacob asking Kevin what the word cuck meant.

“You have a big heart, Jacob,” he said. “And we love you very much for that. But when you find a new friend you seem to not see their less desirable traits, until you get hurt.”

“Like with Jenny and Gina,” Jacob said softly.

“Yes. We just don’t want you to get hurt, sweetheart.”

Jacob mulled it over a bit, not lifting his gaze. “I don’t have a crush on Doug, though. I don’t think so.” He mumbled the next part: “Can you have crushes on both girls and boys?”

“Yes, absolutely,” Kevin said.

“Have you ever had a crush on a girl?”

“No,” Kevin answered, definitively. “But there are many people who have crushes on both, and that is quite acceptable.” He got up from his crouch and went over to sit on the bed with Jacob. “You are still grounded, by the way, starting on Monday. You are to come straight home after school, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays I will send my secretary to bring you to my office.”

Jacob sighed heavily, but didn’t argue. He hated having to spend time in Kevin’s office, so that was probably punishment in itself.

“Now,” Kevin continued, “you were technically correct when you told your father that we couldn’t forbid you from being friends with somebody. However, we would like you to at least think about cooling things off a little bit. Just see this Doug Judy at school. No more going off campus with him, and we would rather you spend time with Gina or Charles when neither of us are home. If you’d like to spend time with Doug Judy outside of school, you may ask us first. And if it’s all right with your mother, you may invite him to your bar mitzvah, but only if she agrees.”

Jacob was quiet for a little while, playing with Cheddar’s ears. “Okay,” he finally said. Then he huffed and rolled over so he was resting his head on Kevin’s knee. “I still want to marry Jenny,” he said. “I’m going to invite her to my bar mitzvah as my date.”

Kevin swallowed a sigh. “Would you like to hear a story?”

Jacob nodded.

“Have I told you about the Thrymskvitha?” Kevin asked.

“Wonder Woman’s home world?”

“No,” Kevin laughed, and he could tell from Jacob’s little smile that he, of course, had already told him the Thrymskvitha, but he wanted to hear it again nonetheless. Kevin settled into his storytelling voice, and recast Thor and Loki as undercover detectives in drag, and the trolls as blundering buffoons trying to run an organized crime ring, until Jacob was laughing.

—

Jacob’s mother Karen still lived with Jacob’s grandmother, who adored Jacob, but who herself had several health issues that had precluded her from taking care of a child, though that was to Raymond and Kevin’s benefit.

Karen had been amicable during their process of adopting Jacob, but had requested an open adoption and the ability to visit. They saw no reason to deny this, as long as Karen went to rehab, which she did. It took a few tries before it really took, but when Jacob was about five, they started mediated visits in the presence of a social worker, and when he was ten, they settled into a routine of once-monthly weekend sleepovers.

Jacob was sullen to Raymond when he was packing his things, but apparently civil to Kevin, who drove him over and dropped him off. On Sunday, when Raymond went up to Karen’s house, he was surprised when Jacob greeted him with a hug.

“Hi, Dad!” he said cheerfully.

“Hi, Ray,” Karen greeted from the table where she was sitting with a few hastily made scrapbooks — they had evidently been planning Jacob’s bar mitzvah. “You want some tea? Jake hasn’t packed yet.”

“I wanna say goodbye to Nana, too,” Jacob said, as a kettle whistled angrily from the kitchen.

“Go, then,” Karen said, not looking up from where she was cutting a picture of a cake out from a magazine.

Jacob pounded upstairs.

“I’ll help myself to tea,” Raymond said, and went to silence the kettle before the whole house burned down. He returned with two mismatched mugs and set Karen’s down in front of her. “How was he?” he asked.

“Oh, a handful as always,” Karen laughed her scattered, slightly manic little laugh. She had recently completed training to be a teacher and had been looking for work, but with a drug charge on her record, it was difficult. She was only fifteen when she had Jacob, and all those charges were expunged, but one of her relapses after turning eighteen had resulted in her arrest for possession.

Unfortunately, the hearty recommendation of an openly gay, black police officer was apparently not enough to tempt schools.

“We had a good time,” she went on. “He told me about Doug Judy, and I said he could invite him to his bar mitzvah. If that’s okay with you?”

Raymond didn’t answer, but instead stared into the middle distance. On the one hand, neither he nor Kevin were Jewish, so he didn’t feel comfortable making any pronouncements about the bar mitzvah, and he had agreed with Kevin about letting Karen decide who was invited. On the other hand, Doug Judy!

“You know,” Karen said slowly, “when I was a teenager and my mother told me not to see someone, that would send me running in their direction.” She laughed a little harshly. “That’s exactly what happened, actually.”

Raymond sighed. “I just don’t want this all to end in tears. I’ve met a lot of people like Doug Judy, and there’s only so many chances you can give a person.”

“I know,” Karen sipped her tea. “I definitely know all about that. But he has to make his own mistakes, right? Otherwise he won’t know they’re mistakes.”

—

Things calmed down for a little while. Jacob served out his detention sentence and grounding with some semblance of grace. Charles and Gina came over for a sleepover, with Charles in Jacob's room and Gina in the guest room, and all seemed to be well.

Then suddenly, out of the blue, Jacob brought the spectre of Doug Judy once more to the dinner table.

“I was thinking. I don’t really need to go to CSI camp this year, since I’ve been twice before, and you’re a cop, and I already know I’m going to be a cop,” Jacob said. “But Doug really wants to go, and he can’t because his family can’t afford it, so maybe he can go instead of me? It can be, like, my birthday present to him.”

Raymond felt a sudden, inexplicable rage in him. Now Doug Judy was infiltrating their summer?

Kevin could read his face, even if no one else could. “It’s a very generous thought,” he said. “But you have to understand that when we send you places, that’s not an offer for other children. If you decide you don’t want to go to camp, you don’t get to decide how to spend that money.”

"Why does Doug Judy want to go to CSI camp, anyway?" Raymond asked, suspiciously.

“Well, since he found out my dad was a cop, he keeps asking about it. He’s really into it.”

"I'm sure Doug Judy would have fun at the police department's junior academy," Raymond said. "The program is free and they're always looking for young people to sign up."

"Yeah, but junior academy kind of sucks," Jacob said. Raymond raised an eyebrow and Jacob wiggled a little. "I mean, the cops who run it act like they're so bored. Gina and I spent a whole day at the mall instead and they didn’t even care. CSI camp is so much better, and it's an actual camp and you get to sleep in a cabin and go swimming and stuff!"

Raymond made a note to look into the lacklustre officers running the junior academy. "Unfortunately, they probably won't allow Doug Judy at CSI camp."

"Why?" Jacob leaned forward, challenging. "Because he's poor?"

"Because of his record!"

There was an uncomfortable silence at the table.

"He hasn't done anything, besides the wall," Jacob said softly. "I mean, I don't know. Did you look him up?"

Kevin was silent, giving Raymond his Look.

"I was worried that Doug Judy wasn't a good influence on you," Raymond said. "So of course I looked up his record, and yes, he does have one."

"Did you look up all my friends?" Jacob asked, sounding a little scandalized. Before Raymond could even answer, Jacob turned to Kevin and asked, politely: "May I be excused?" Kevin nodded and Jacob went upstairs quietly.

It was the quietest dinner table storm-off Jacob had ever performed, so this was all uncharted territory.

"Raymond," Kevin said, once they were alone for a little while.

"A criminal record exists for this very reason, Kevin." Raymond took a long drink from his wine.

“Yes, but surely a little boy should be allowed to make friends without those friends' parents digging up mistakes that he's already been punished for,” Kevin said gently. They didn't often argue about their philosophies around policing and incarceration, since it often came uncomfortably close to their philosophies around parenting.

“Doug Judy is a teenager, and my priority is our son,” Raymond said.

“Yes,” Kevin sighed. “I know. I trust you.” He got up and kissed Raymond on the forehead, and cleared away the dishes.

—

It was less than a week later when Jacob called Raymond at the precinct in the middle of a day.

“Hey!” Jacob shouted down the line. He was only supposed to use his cellular phone for emergencies, and the initial panic Raymond felt was quickly reined in by his police training.

“What’s wrong?” he demanded.

“Doug wants to talk to you. Can we come in after school?”

Raymond narrowed his eyes. “And what does he want to talk about?”

There was a little shuffling on the line, and Raymond could hear Doug Judy’s flippant cadence muffled. “He doesn’t want to tell me,” Jacob said. “But he says it’s important and he only wants to talk to you. It’s about his step-dad. He wants to make a statement!”

Raymond’s police training made him sit up even straighter. “He wants to make a statement about his step-father?”

“Yeah. I don’t know what it’s about, though.”

Raymond was already calling up Doug Judy’s juvenile record, and was searching for the name listed as “father”, though it was likely that wouldn’t be the person Doug wanted to talk about. “Yes, you may come to the precinct after school. I’ll send Jeffords to pick you up.”

“Yes!!” He heard Jacob cheering in the distance before the boy clumsily ended the call. “We’re gonna get to ride in a squad car with Uncle Terry!”

Doug Judy was all smiles and swagger when they came in. “Sup, Uncle Ray?” he called when Raymond walked over to them. Raymond didn’t dignify that with an answer.

“Jacob, you may sit with Jeffords in the break room, and do your homework,” he said. He ignored Jacob’s put-upon sigh and turned to Doug Judy. “We’ll speak in the interrogation room. Would you like a bottle of water, or a box of a juice?”

“A juice box would be dope,” Doug Judy grinned.

Raymond had their civilian administrator bring over a juice box, and commended her professionalism when the boy clumsily flirted with her.

He led Doug over to the interrogation room. “Now, don’t be intimidated. You may have seen rooms like this on television,” he said, knowing full well Doug Judy had seen them in real life, too. “But you aren’t in any trouble and there is nobody else listening in.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Doug noisily broke his straw off the side of the juice box. “I know the deal.”

They sat in the quiet room and Raymond looked at Doug expectantly. He had interviewed children before, but it was something he never quite got the hang of, usually leaving the duty to gentler members of his team, like Jeffords. “Jacob tells me you have some information you’d like to share.”

Doug got quiet then, and lost a little of his devil-may-care attitude. He fiddled with his juice box. “Cops help people, right?” he asked.

“Yes,” Raymond said. “They’re supposed to,” he added a second later, to be fully truthful.

“No cop has ever helped me,” Doug said very softly, looking at the table.

That was always painful to hear, and Raymond never had a worthy reply for it, so he said nothing.

After a moment, Doug spoke again, his voice younger, softer, and breaking. “It’s Derek,” he said.

Raymond’s pen was ready at paper. “And who’s Derek?” he asked. Derek wasn’t the man listed as father on Doug Judy’s juvenile record.

“He’s my step-dad. Well, not really. My mom says to call him step-dad, but they’re not married.” Doug was quiet again for a little while. “If I tell you this, what’s going to happen to me and my brother?”

“You have a brother?”

“Well, he’s a foster brother,” Doug said. “My mom took him in. He’s only little. What’s going to happen to us?”

This was never an easy question to answer, and another reason Raymond tried to avoid interviewing children. “It depends on what you have to say. It’s possible you’ll go to another home, and since he’s not your biological brother, you may be split up.” He decided to speak to Doug as if he were speaking to Jacob, and he leaned forward and put his hand on Doug’s arm. Doug didn’t shy away, so he left it there. “But we’ll do everything we can to help you, Doug.”

—

Two hours later, Doug and Jacob were sitting in the break room, eating vending machine candy and laughing at each other.

“This is a ton of information,” Jeffords said, with six other files open on his desk, cross-referencing what Doug Judy had told them. Doug’s “step-dad” was involved in a startling amount of car thefts, and had apparently taught Doug how to hot wire cars so he could assist him. What had led Doug to turning “snitch” was that Derek had also started training Doug’s little brother — and Jacob’s endless praise of his “super cool cop” dad.

“Yes,” Raymond agreed. “There’s enough here that we can get a warrant today. But I want you to make the arrest tomorrow, during school hours,” he said.

“Yes, sir,” Jeffords chirped dutifully.

Raymond glanced over at the break room, where Jacob and Doug were now looking at one of Jacob’s school books, which is perhaps the last thing Raymond ever expected to see. He made another mental note to call the CSI camp people about setting up a scholarship.

—

When it was all said and done, Kevin smiled sweetly and ran his hand over Raymond’s head the way he liked. “I told you all was well,” he said.

“You did,” Raymond conceded.

“I find it interesting,” Kevin went on. “You were worried about Doug Judy being a bad influence, but you didn’t consider that our Jacob might be a good influence.”

THE END.

#brooklyn nine-nine #brooklyn 99 #b99 #fanfic #rated g #jake peralta #doug judy #ray holt #kevin cozner #ray and kevin adopted jake #doug judy is a BAD INFLUENCE #influence

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marymosley · 6 years ago

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Faculty Members Denounce The “Rape Culture” At St. Lawrence University As Part Of Its Calls To Rescind Sen. Collins’ Honorary Degree

I wrote a column yesterday in The Hill newspaper on the effort to strip away the honorary degree awarded to Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine) in 2017 in retaliation for her vote to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh. One of the letters seeking the rescission was from roughly 100 professors from virtually every department within St. Lawrence University. What was most surprising was the assertion of these faculty members that St. Lawrence University has a “rape culture” and that Sen. Collins’ vote was in furtherance of that culture. Notably, there are only 217 full-time and part-time faculty at the university.

There were two letters submitted to the school, including letter co-signed by more than 1,300 alumni.

However, it is the letter of the professors that stood out. The letter is a thinly veiled act of retaliation against Collins for taking an opposing view on the Kavanaugh matter. However, one passage stood out in its description of the university itself:

“Yet, actions have consequences, and the actions taken by Senator Collins on October 5, 2018, cannot be taken lightly and cannot go by without comment. As we clarified in the Faculty Statement of Values, “We value putting our knowledge into action to benefit our communities.” Senator Collins herself called for action. She stated, “If any good at all has come from this ugly confirmation process, it has been to create an awareness that we have underestimated the pervasiveness of this terrible problem. […] We must listen to survivors, and every day we must seek to stop the criminal behavior that has hurt so many. We owe this to ourselves, our children, and generations to come.” The Kavanaugh hearings were evidence of the pervasive rape culture in the United States, a culture from which St. Lawrence is certainly not immune. We exist in a culture that devalues survivors; a culture that too regularly blames survivors for the violence done against them; and a culture that doubts survivors when they bravely come forward. Rescinding her honorary Doctor of Humane Letters for her words and deeds which reinforce this culture would be a symbolic act that illustrates St. Lawrence University’s strong commitment moving forward to continue dismantling rape culture on our own campus.”

While most of us agree that much more should be done in combatting sexual assault and supporting alleged victims, it is not clear what these professors are relying as evidence of a “pervasive rape culture” in the United States where we “too regularly blame[] survivors for the violence done against them and a culture that doubts survivors when they bravely come forward.” Hundreds of high-profile individuals have been identified and often denounced as part of the MeToo movement. The Kavanaugh hearings cited in the letter were extended to allow for additional investigation of the underlying allegations. As I stated earlier, I would have preferred that the Democrats had confidentially disclosed the allegations earlier and that, despite the belated disclosure, the Republicans would have allowed for a longer investigation. However, as I wrote previously, alleged victims have the right to be heard not the right to be believed. Again, while I wanted a longer investigation, the record supporting Dr. Christine Blasey Ford’s allegations was very limited and largely unsupported. Reasonable people could come to opposing conclusions on the available evidence. Yet, the results were not the product of any “rape culture.”

It was equally surprising to see roughly half of the faculty accuse St. Lawrence as still needed to “dismantle[e] rape culture” on its campus. St. Lawrence University is viewed as one of the most liberal universities in the country with a long-standing commitment to the protection and advancement of its female students. I would be very surprised to learn that the university has a “rape culture” that is still prevalent on campus.

The problem here may be the nomenclature. For many of us, a “culture” reflects a prevalent and often tolerated set of social or behavior norms. In many journals however the meaning seems more fluid. For example, there was a article by Helen Wilson in the Journal of Feminist Geography that drew widespread ridicule in arguing that her study of dog parks in Portland, Oregon found them to be “microcosms where hegemonic masculinist norms governing queering behavior and compulsory heterosexuality can be observed in a cross-species environment.” After 1000 hours of viewing, she found “one dog rape/humping incident every 60 minutes” and that “oppressive patriarchal norms reach a zenith in dog parks, rendering them not only gendered spaces but spaces that exhibit and magnify toxic . . . themes intrinsic to gender binaries.”

That article received a torrent of criticism on conservative sites. My interest is the reference to a “dog rape culture” as a matter of nomenclature. It may be that there is a disconnect in how some of us read such references and their intended meaning. It is hard for me to believe that almost half of the faculty at St. Lawrence University seriously believe that the university continues to foster or failure to combat a rape culture on campus. The point could be lost in the translation of public discourse in how these words are meant and received.

I do not believe that, as suggested, that Sen. Collins acted knowingly or unknowingly in facilitation of a rape culture in voting for Justice Kavanaugh. She delivered a thoughtful and detailed explanation of her vote. One can easily disagree with her points but reasonable people can disagree on the evidence without being representatives of a rape culture.

The professors then return to the “rape culture” problem and suggest that Collins could be used as some type of useful “symbolic act” — ignoring the demeaning impact for Collins in being the first person ever stripped by the university of an honorary degree:

“The Kavanaugh hearings were evidence of the pervasive rape culture in the United States, a culture from which St. Lawrence is certainly not immune. We exist in a culture that devalues survivors; a culture that too regularly blames survivors for the violence done against them; and a culture that doubts survivors when they bravely come forward. Rescinding her honorary Doctor of Humane Letters for her words and deeds which reinforce this culture would be a symbolic act that illustrates St. Lawrence University’s strong commitment moving forward to continue dismantling rape culture on our own campus.”

I have criticized the letter of the faculty on various grounds, including its open hostility to someone who simply comes to an opposing conclusion on a public controversy. I find the letter to be deeply disturbing from academics who seem to allow for little range of disagreement on such issues while painting people like Collins as virtual rape apologists.

Strangely, after labeling Collins as a virtual rape apologist, the professors then add “We continue to be grateful for her willingness to be a regular speaker who inspires our students at DC-Connect events.” In other words, you may be a rape apologists but we appreciate your free appearances with our students in D.C.”

My greatest concern about this letter is the damage that it will do to the national reputation of this wonderful institution that counts as graduates not just Collins, but suffragist Olympia Brown, diplomat Owen D. Young, Fox anchor Martha McCollum, actor Kirk Douglas, and others. St. Lawrence has a rich intellectual history that is not represented well by this letter. More concerning, it will not long be held in its rightfully high regard as a world-class institution if this is an indication of the intellectual honesty and tolerance of its faculty.

Here are the signatories from a wide array of departments at St. Lawrence University.

Eve Walsh Stoddard, Emeritus Professor, Global Studies Patti Frazer Lock, Cummings Professor, Math, Computer Science, and Statistics Jennifer Hansen, Professor, Philosophy John Collins, Professor, Global Studies Natalia R. Singer, Professor, English Erin McCarthy, Professor, Philosophy Chris Buck, Associate Professor, Government Jessica M. Prody, Associate Professor, Performance and Communication Arts Wendi Haugh, Associate Professor, Anthropology & African Studies Judith DeGroat, Associate Professor, History Jennifer Thomas, Associate Professor, Performance and Communication Arts Jeff Maynes, Associate Professor, Philosophy Samantha Glazier, Associate Professor, Chemistry Jennifer MacGregor, Visiting Assistant Professor, Gender and Sexuality Studies Alexander M Schreiber, Associate Professor, Biology Damon Berry, Assistant Professor, Religious Studies Mindy Pitre, Associate Professor, Anthropology Jill Pflugheber, Microscopy Specialist, Biology Jessica Sierk, Assistant Professor, Education Linda Auker, Visiting Assistant Professor, Biology Adam Harr, Associate Professor, Anthropology Shinu Anna Abraham, Associate Professor, Anthropology Daniel M. Look, Associate Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, Statistics Liz Regosin, Professor, History Maegan Bos, Associate Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Lisa Torrey, Associate Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Ed Harcourt, Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Jim DeFranza, Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Bob Cowser, Professor, English Amy Hauber, Associate Professor, Art and Art History Arun Brahmbhatt, Assistant Professor, Religious Studies Laura Mills-Smith, Assistant Professor, Psychology Peter FitzRandolph, Associate Professor, NYC Program, Economics Jayantha Jayman, Associate Professor, Global Studies Anne Csete, Associate Professor, History Kerri Canedy, Visiting Assistant Professor, Performance and Communication Arts Sarah Knobel, Assistant Professor, Art & Art History Richard J. Perry, Professor of Anthropology Emeritus Allison L. Rowland, Assistant Professor, Performance & Communication Arts Emma Fredrick, Visiting Assistant Professor, Psychology Marcella Salvi, Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures James Shuman, Associate Professor Emeritus, Education Sarah Gates, Craig Professor Of English Bethany Cencer, Adjunct Assistant Professor, First-Year Program Sam Byrne, Assistant Professor, Environmental Studies Jessica Chapman, Associate Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Catherine Jahncke, Associate Professor, Physics Esther Oey, Visiting Assistant Professor, Education Natasha Komarov, Assistant Professor, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Penny Vlagopoulos, Assistant Professor, English Steven White, Lewis Professor, Modern Languages and Literatures Erika Barthelmess, Piskor Professor, Biology Jon Rosales, Associate Professor, Environmental Studies Kate Cleary, Visiting Assistant Professor, Environmental Studies Kimberly Covill, Assistant Director of the Adirondack Semester, Outdoor studies Rafael Castillo Bejarano, Visiting Assistant Professor, Modern Languages and Literatures Calvin F. Exoo, Emeritus Professor, Government Sandra K. Hinchman, Professor Emerita, Government Leah Rohlfsen, Associate Professor, Sociology Rosa Williams, Assistant Professor, History & African Studies Kerry Grant, Emeritus Professor, English Marina Llorente, Professor of Hispanic Studies, Modern Languages and Literatures Ann Hubert, Assistant Professor, English Josephine Skiff, Assistant Director, Newell Center for Arts Technology Evelyn Jennings, Margaret Vilas Professor of Latin American History, History Richard Jenseth, Associate Professor, Film Studies and NYC Program Rebecca Jewell, Adjunct Faculty, First-Year Program Katharine Wolfe, Assistant Professor, Philosophy Mark MacWilliams, Professor, Religious Studies Eloise Brezault, Assistant Professeur, Modern Languages/African Studies Paul Graham, Professor, English Dorothy Limouze, Professor, Art and Art History Brook Henkel, Assistant Professor, Modern Languages and Film Studies Karen Dillon O’Neil, Emerita Professor, Sociology Josh Exoo, Adjunct Assistant Professor, First Year Program Gina Breen, Visiting Assistant Professor, Modern Languages Angela Sweigart-Gallagher, Assistant Professor, Performance and Communication Arts Pedro Ponce, Associate Professor, English Kenneth L. Crowell, Professor Emeritus of Biology Emily Dixon, Associate Professor, Chemistry and Biology Nicole Roché, Adjunct Assistant Professor, First Year Program Glenn Harris, Emeritus Professor, Environmental Studies Kathleen M. Self, Associate Professor, Religious Studies Jillian Jaeger, Assistant Professor, Government Joe Erlichman, Professor and R. Sheldon and Virginia Johnson Chair of Science, Biology Peter D. Ladd, Associate Professor, Education Barry Torres, Director of Music Ensembles, Music Randall T. G. Hill, Associate Professor , Performance & Communication Arts Yuhua Wen, Associate Professor, Modern Languages Zenel Garcia, Visiting Assistant Professor, Government Brian Watson, Associate Professor, Emeritus, Physics Stephen Barnard, Assistant Professor, Sociology Savannah Crowley ’14, Adjunct Faculty, Global Studies Robin Lock, Burry Professor of Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics Michael Greenwald, Associate Professor Emeritus, Religious Studies Will Madison, Assistant Director of Adirondack Semester, Outdoor Studies

Faculty Members Denounce The “Rape Culture” At St. Lawrence University As Part Of Its Calls To Rescind Sen. Collins’ Honorary Degree published first on https://immigrationlawyerto.tumblr.com/

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