Valentin Gendrot

flic (French noun, slang) cop; police officer Flic (noun) The gripping and groundbreaking work of French comics journalism. What happens behind the walls of a police station? What kind of living does a cop make? And how does a culture of racism and violence become entrenched? Valentin Gendrot went undercover in Paris to find the answers — revelations that rocked France and led to a series of investigations, including an internal affairs case on Gendrot himself. Flic is an exposé of a world never before seen by outsiders, an urgent story for our times, powerfully illustrated by the talented Thierry Chavant.

"What happens within a police force? In his intimate and revealing inside look at France's police culture, journalist Valentin Gendrot depicts his two year undercover investigation. Juxtaposed with playful feline illustrations, this shocking expos is as relevant as ever." --New York Public Library, 'NYPL Recommends: Best New Comics for Adults' The story of a French journalist who infiltrated the country's police force, revealing a culture of racism and violence in which officers act with impunity. What happens behind the walls of a police station? In order to answer this question, undercover journalist Valentin Gendrot puts his life on hold for two years. He decides to undertake training and become a police officer. Several months later, Gendrot is working in a police station in one of the tough northern arrondissements of Paris, where relations between the law and locals are strained. Gendrot hides nothing. He witnesses police brutality, racism, blunders, and cover-ups. But he also sees the oppressive working conditions that officers endure, and mourns the tragic suicide of a colleague. Asking important questions about who holds institutional power and how we can hold them to account, Flic is a gripping expos of a world never before seen by outsiders.

A Paris police force as you've never seen it Police officers are obliged to give an account of every incident they are involved in. But what happened today will never be logged. Because that's what police solidarity means: what happens in the van stays in the van. Well, not always. Not this time. What really happens behind the walls of a police station? To answer this question, investigative journalist Valentin Gendrot put his life on hold for two years and became the first journalist in history to infiltrate the police undetected. Within three months of training to become an officer, he was given a permit to carry a weapon in public. And although he lived in daily fear of being discovered, in his book Gendrot hides nothing. Assigned to work in a tough area of Paris where tensions between the law and locals ran high, Gendrot witnessed police brutality, racism, blunders, and cover-ups. But he also saw the oppressive working conditions that officers endured, and experienced the tragic suicide of a colleague. Asking important questions about who holds institutional power and how we can hold them to account, Cop is a gripping expos of a world never before seen by outsiders.

A Paris police force as you've never seen it Police officers are obliged to give an account of every incident they are involved in. But what happened today will never be logged. Because that's what police solidarity means: what happens in the van stays in the van. Well, not always. Not this time. What really happens behind the walls of a police station? To answer this question, investigative journalist Valentin Gendrot put his life on hold for two years and became the first journalist in history to infiltrate the police undetected. Within three months of training to become an officer, he was given a permit to carry a weapon in public. And although he lived in daily fear of being discovered, in his book Gendrot hides nothing. Assigned to work in a tough area of Paris where tensions between the law and locals ran high, Gendrot witnessed police brutality, racism, blunders, and cover-ups. But he also saw the oppressive working conditions that officers endured, and mourned the tragic suicide of a colleague. Asking important questions about who holds institutional power and how we can hold them to account, Cop is a gripping expos of a world never before seen by outsiders.

Police officers are obliged to give an account of every incident they are involved in. But what happened today will never be logged. Because that’s what police solidarity means: what happens in the van stays in the van. Well, not always. Not this time. What really happens behind the walls of a police station? To answer this question, investigative journalist Valentin Gendrot put his life on hold for two years and became the first journalist in history to infiltrate the police undetected. Within three months of training to become an officer, he was given a permit to carry a weapon in public. And although he lived in daily fear of being discovered, in his book Gendrot hides nothing. Assigned to work in a tough area of Paris where tensions between the law and locals ran high, Gendrot witnessed police brutality, racism, blunders, and cover-ups. But he also saw the oppressive working conditions that officers endured, and mourned the tragic suicide of a colleague. Asking important questions about who holds institutional power and how we can hold them to account, Cop is a gripping exposé of a world never before seen by outsiders.

Toimittaja soluttautui Ranskan poliisiin. Kolmen kuukauden koulutuksen jälkeen hänelle annettiin ase ja asema. Karuissa lähiöissä työskennellyt Valentin Gendrot näki läheltä sekä poliisin rasismin ja väärinkäytökset että rankat työolot, jotka ajavat poliiseja jopa itsemurhiin. Pariisin poliisi työskentelee vaikeissa olosuhteissa, ja se heijastuu poliisien elämään. Toimittaja Valentin Gendrot haki poliisiksi nähdäkseen läheltä poliisien koulutuksen, ajatukset ja lähtökohdat. Lyhyen koulutuksen jälkeen hänet komennettiin raskaaseen ja huonosti palkattuun työhön. Gendrot kuvaa, kuinka kehnoilla valmiuksilla ranskalaispoliisi joutuu kohtaamaan esimerkiksi perheväkivallan uhreja ja tekijöitä. Kollegoiden ihmisvihamielinen ajattelutapa tarttuu, ja pian toimittaja huomaa kutsuvansa asiakkaita pilkkanimillä. Rasismi kukkii työyhteisössä, mutta myös poliisit kärsivät työtovereidensa asenteista.” Halusin työskennellä peitetehtävässä poliisilaitoksella, jotta voisin näyttää ne asiat, joita emme koskaan näe. Yhteiskunnassamme on kaksi suurta tabua: poliisin väärinkäytökset ja poliisin itsemurhat. Joko pidämme poliisista tai inhoamme sitä. Arvelin, että asia on monisyisempi. Tämä kirja ei ole poliisivastainen. Se on todenmukainen kuvaus Pariisin hankalassa lähiössä työskentelevän poliisinvirkamiehen arjesta.” - Valentin GendrotValentin Gendrot on tutkiva journalisti, joka on erikoistunut undercover-tehtäviin. Juttujensa vuoksi hän on työskennellyt tehtailla, varastotyöntekijänä ja ulosottomiehenä. Kahden vuoden jakso poliisina oli hänen pisin peitetehtävänsä.