Bill Cosby's Message of Empowerment

I am guessing that most everyone is familiar with the serenity prayer - grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Bill Cosby seemed to be invoking that prayer at an event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision. In his remarks, he criticized the poor English used by so many in the black community and refused to view African-American criminals as victims.

Referring to incarcerated black males, he stated, "These are not political criminals. These are people going around stealing Coca-Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake and then we run out and we are outraged, [saying] 'The cops shouldn't have shot him.' What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand?"

While many conservatives jumped on these remarks as a finger-pointing "I told you so" opportunity to say that racism is not the problem, others saw them as an unnecessarily negative attack on the black community. Such responses miss the deeper context of his comments.

Rather than being a negative slam, his remarks were all about empowerment. The power to make personal choices that can have a marked impact on one’s own life. One can choose to make good decisions and one can choose to make bad decisions. While he focused on the negative choices that he feels are made too frequently, the underlying truth is that there is a choice.

So often, self-destructive behavior is the result of hopelessness. One gets laid off and has trouble finding a job. Frustration sets in and is taken out on those around us. Families break up, relationships are lost. Sorrows are drowned in alcohol and drugs. Self worth plummets. A vicious cycle sets in where our negative outlook only serves to reinforce and justify our self-destructive behavior.

It can happen to anyone, be they black, white, green or blue. Add the deleterious effects of racism, and that hopelessness can become overwhelming.

But there is hope. Sure, life is hard and often unfair. And while we may not have control over the external events in our lives, we have complete control in how we react to them. We can choose to get up in the morning. We can choose to believe in ourselves, no matter what anyone else says. We can choose to do the right thing. External factors can encourage us to do the wrong thing, but they cannot force us to do so. We as individuals have complete power over our conduct.

Making the right choices gives us the peace of mind that comes from knowing that no matter what life has thrown our way, we have made the most of our opportunities. To paraphrase, we have been granted the wisdom to accept the things we cannot change, the power to change those we can and the serenity that comes from knowing the difference.

That is what I get from Bill Cosby’s remarks. Make the right choices, do what you can do as an individual to better yourself and disregard those things that are beyond your control. Do not accept obstacles as excuses to fail but as challenges to rise above. Therein lies the wisdom.