Carmen Talk: Conviction With a Backbone: Why We Must Choose Courage Over Cowardice

Courage is the backbone of conviction - and both are in short supply in today's political landscape. This raw, unfiltered episode tackles the defining struggle of our time: the battle between cowardice masquerading as strength versus genuine courage that stands up for humanity.

What makes someone a coward? It's not just fear—it's the weaponization of fear against the vulnerable. From immigration enforcement agencies terrorizing communities to politicians redrawing voting maps mid-decade to cling to power, we're witnessing cowardice dressed up as policy and leadership. When officials target farmworkers and day laborers while giving a pass to the corporations that exploit them, that's not enforcement—that's fear in a suit.

The counterbalance to this spreading cowardice is courage with conviction. We spotlight the Texas legislators who fled to Illinois to block unjust redistricting, the governors fighting for immigrant rights in court, and the community organizations forming rapid response networks to protect their neighbors. These aren't just feel-good stories—they're blueprints for resistance.

You don't need to be a hero to make a difference. The most powerful act may be simply refusing to look away, choosing compassion when the crowd chooses cruelty, and speaking up when silence feels safer. Because courage, like cowardice, is contagious. When you stand firm in your convictions, you create space for others to find their voice too. This is how we move mountains—together, with conviction and a whole lot of courage. Are you ready to be part of that movement?

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Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


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Episode Transcript

Carmen Lezeth (00:00):
Hey everyone, welcome to All About the Joy.
This is Carmen Talk and I'myour host, carmen Lissette.
Today I want to talk aboutcowards, and I'm not talking
about the ones in the movies.

(00:21):
I'm talking about the kind whorun from truth, who hide behind
cruelty, who weaponize theirfear and then somehow call it
policy.
If you don't have compassionfor other people I'm just going
to say it this way you're acoward.
It's so simple to me.
If your hatred blinds you tothe suffering of the
Palestinians, for example, I'mcalling you a coward If you

(00:43):
can't hold two truths at once,if you can't care deeply for the
hostages held by Hamas andstill grieve for the Palestinian
lives lost, you are absolutelya coward.
If you think it's okay to rippeople from our streets, people
who came here for a better lifebecause they don't look like you

(01:03):
, pray like you or speak yourlanguage, I'm sorry, but I'm
calling you a coward.
And yeah, let's name names.
Ice is cowardice in uniform.
An agency that terrorizescommunities, detains children
are you kidding me?
And calls it enforcement.
They're raiding home depots andfarms Okay, they're separating

(01:27):
families, like that's nothingnew with this stupid
administration.
But pretending that that'sjustice Okay, that's being a
coward.
Real men don't wear masks, bythe way, they just don't.
Ice isn't protecting Americancitizens.
They're just punishing peoplefor doing hard work.

(01:47):
Oh, for being brown?
That's the other thing.
It's just racism on fire.
And look, all of these workersare hired by American companies
that pay them under the table.
Why aren't corporations beingheld accountable for not
assisting people with theirpaperwork or getting the right

(02:07):
people, who are actuallycitizens of this country, to
work here?
They do it because they wantcheap labor.
But do you see how cowards willgo after people who are leaving
other countries, fearing fortheir lives, coming to a place
where they think they have abetter chance of raising their

(02:28):
families?
But instead we call themcriminals, people who are doing
all the hard work that no otherAmerican is willing to do, and
we don't even give corporationsor farm owners or anybody who
actually is employing peopleunder the table.

(02:48):
We don't even give them a slapon the wrist.
Instead, we go after poor,hardworking brown and black
people, people of color, who arejust here trying to have a
better life for their childrenand are also doing all the right
things to get their paperworkin order.
Another way, you know, ice isand will continue to be

(03:11):
considered cowards is becausethey're going to actual places
where people are going to gettheir paperwork in order.
Right, they're at the courtsand ICE is sitting waiting there
, for it's just ridiculous.
And the people who cheer themon, who think that every brown
body is a threat cowards.

(03:32):
And yeah, I'm talking about you,stupid Dean Cain D-list actor,
Texas Governor Greg Abbott.
You're also a coward trying toredraw maps like mid-decade
because the GOP's afraid oflosing power.
Really, my God, I have never,ever, ever in all my life seen

(03:54):
so many losers in politicaloffice.
Real men would fight fair, mrAbbott.
Real men would not usegerrymandering to get their
state's votes to stay in power.
That's simply called cheating,you coward.
And for those of you who don'tknow what gerrymandering is,

(04:14):
it's basically when states drawborderlines right to make voting
maps.
They actually outline districtswith borders in a sneaky way to
help their team win, and that'swhat they're trying to do.
And don't get me wrong, bothsides do this, but this time I
mean, gerrymandering is wrong onso many levels, but this time

(04:36):
they're doing it when nobodyever does it.
They're doing it mid-seasonbasically.
Usually it's done after thecensus, but they're doing it now
specifically because thebiggest coward in office, donald
Trump, is afraid of losingbecause he won't win enough
seats, so he's going to lose theHouse of Representatives.
It's fascinating.

(04:57):
It's fascinating to watch thesequote-unquote real men do
things right in the Americanpeople's face Total cowards.
And Greg Abbott is ordering thearrest of lawmakers who dare
resist them.
Fascinating, fascinating them,fascinating, fascinating.
That's not leadership, greg,that's fear in a suit.

(05:26):
So what's the definition ofbeing a coward?
I think you can already get itby my voice, but a coward is
someone who lacks the courage todo or endure dangerous or
unpleasant things.
But let me add this A coward issomeone who refuses to feel,
who chooses power over empathy,who mistakes cruelty for
strength but, more importantly,chooses cruelty for strength.

(05:47):
Yeah, I'm talking about you,donald Trump.
Donald Trump, biggest coward ofthem all.
Now do you want to talk aboutcourage?
Because I've got some of that,because I always want to be
about the positivity, I alwayswant to try to see the good.
So courage is not performative.
It's not loud for the sake ofbeing loud.
It's the quiet, it's therefusal to betray your values,

(06:12):
not make them up as you go along, not pretending you have values
by saying you're Christian butactually not behaving as if.
Courage is the Texas statelegislature, the Democrats who
fled to Illinois to block aracist redistricting plan in
Texas.
It's Governor JB Pritzker I'msorry if I'm saying his name

(06:34):
wrong saying we got you.
It's standing up to Trump andAbbott and saying things like no
, not on our watch.
Courage is Governor GavinNewsom fighting the Trump
administration in court againand again and again and
protecting billions in federalfunding, defending immigrant
rights and refusing to back down.

(06:54):
Courage is local citizensforming rapid response networks
to push ICE out of theirneighborhoods, and you may not
know this, but it'sorganizations like ICE out of
California.
It's another organization likeImmigrant Defense Project, and
we Are Casa.
They say we will not be silent,we will not be complicit.

(07:15):
Courage is knowing the risksand showing up anyways.
So if you're listening to thisand thinking I don't know what
to do and I don't mean that in amean way, but everyone seems to
be throwing up their hands infrustration, in sadness, in
defeat Don't be in defeat.
Find courage within you, findthe want, la gana, the want to

(07:40):
want to do something, and youcan start here.
Ask yourself what you're afraidof, ask yourself what you're
protecting, ask yourself whatkind of world you want to live
in.
What kind of America do youwant to live in?
Because let me tell yousomething about being a coward.
It is absolutely contagious.

(08:01):
You can see it with the Trumpridiculousness.
You can see it Like everyone isjust a coward to stand up to
him, because it's easier to be acoward, to keep your mouth shut
, to say nothing.
And every day, we walk towardslosing more of our democracy.
But here's the thing you'reforgetting Courage is also

(08:24):
contagious.
Courage is something that, whenyou see it, you also feel like
you need to be a part of it.
So I choose courage, I choosecourage and I will always choose
courage every day of the weekand twice on Sundays.
So what do we do with all this?
We name the cowards out loudand we honor courage.

(08:48):
We stand in conviction.
Conviction isn't just belief.
It's belief with a backbone.
With a backbone, it's therefusal to betray what you know
is right.
You know what is right and youknow what is wrong, and you stop

(09:12):
believing the BS that is beingtold to you, even though you can
see it with your own eyes.
You refuse to betray what youknow is right.
Refuse to betray what you know,is right, even if it's
unpopular, even and especiallywhen it's inconvenient.
That is conviction.
Conviction is also what letsyou say I can care about the
Palestinian lives and Israelihostages, I can want safety and

(09:38):
reject cruelty.
I can love my country anddemand that it do better.
Because courage withoutconviction, that's just noise
Okay, people, that's just mothereffing noise.
And conviction without courage,it's just a theory.
But together it moves mountainsand we can move mountains.

(09:59):
So I'm not asking you to be ahero.
I'm asking you to be braveenough to feel something, to
stay in the game, to see clearly, to speak when it's easier to
stay silent, to choosecompassion when the crowd
chooses cruelty.
Being a coward is super loudright now.

(10:21):
But courage with convictionthat's how we change the world.
That's how we do it togetherwith conviction and a whole lot
of courage.
Thanks for stopping by.
All About the Joy.
Be better and stay beautiful.
Folks, have a sweet day.