10 Things You Didn't Know About Michelle Obama
Updated on 3/26/09
1. Michelle LaVaughn Robinson was born Jan. 17, 1964, to Fraser and Marian Robinson. The family lived on the South Side of Chicago, and Fraser worked for the Chicago water department. Michelle attended the Whitney M. Young Magnet School.
2. Michelle followed her brother to Princeton University, where she graduated in 1985 with a bachelor's in sociology and a minor in African-American studies. For her thesis, "Princeton-Educated Blacks and the Black Community," she surveyed black alumni on their racial attitudes since graduating.
3. Michelle then attended Harvard Law School, earning her degree in 1988. After law school, she went to work at the Chicago law firm of Sidley & Austin.
4. At the law firm, she met Barack Obama. He was a summer associate; she was his adviser. While Michelle wasn't initially interested in a romance, she soon changed her mind. On their first date, Michelle and Barack saw Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing.
5. In the early 1990s, following the death of both her father and a close friend from college, Michelle reassessed her life. Rethinking her career path, she decided to leave the corporate law world to work in public service. She took a job in the mayor's office and then in the city's office of planning and development. In 1993, Michelle became the founding executive director of Public Allies Chicago, an AmeriCorps national service program that provided training to young adults pursuing careers in the public sector.
6. In 1996, Michelle moved to a position with the University of Chicago. By 2005, she had worked her way up to a vice president spot at the University Medical Center.
7. Barack Obama's career was launched into the national spotlight when he delivered a speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. On his way to the stage, Michelle reportedly gave him a hug and told him (breaking the tension): "Just don't screw it up, buddy."
8. Michelle and Barack have been married since October 1992. The couple has two young daughters: Malia and Sasha.
9. The Obamas work hard to give their daughters a grounded life. When Obama was on the road as a senator, they used webcams to see and talk to one another.
10. Michelle is a Stevie Wonder fan, and exercise is a favorite hobby (she reportedly used to get up at 4:30 a.m. to run on a treadmill).
Sources:
Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Tribune
Contemporary Black Biography
Essence
Los Angeles Times
Newsweek
Obama '08: Meet Michelle
Vogue
Washington Post
Reader Comments
about world peace
Things that most people do not know we are @ the end of the world cycle which is 5000 years . the cycle is devided into four parts
GOLDEN AGE
SILVER AGE
COPPER AGE
IRON AGE WE ARE IN THIS PERIOD RIGHT NOW EACH ONE OF THESE PERIOD LAST FOR 1250 YEARS WHICH WILL GIVE US A TOTAL OF 5000 YEARS
WE HAVE HAD TWO WORLD WARS THERE IS ONE MORE WHICH WILL BE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND AMERICA. BUT BEFORE THAT WE WILL HAVE COMPLET PEACE ON EARTH AND THE PRESIDENT WHO WILL BRING ABUUT THAT PEACE IS PRESIDENT OBAMA TO BECOME A GREAT PERSON YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO OVER COME A LOT OF HARD SHIPS THE REPUBLICION IS PROVIDING THAT RIGHT NOW THANKS TO THEM FOR MOLDING HIM INTO ONE OF AMERICA GREATEST PRESIDENT
The improbability
of Barack and Michelle occupying The White House is absolutely STUNNING, when one thinks deeply about who these two people actually are and how they got there.
I know that conservatives "think" they speak for God, but I am strongly tempted to believe that America and the world received some divine providence in the 2008 presidential election. I do not "idolize" the Obamas, but I am proud we elected them, and I think their messages are good and timely medicine for us in troubled times.
The alternatives put up by the Republicans, after all, were John and Cindy McCain, two people enriched from selling beer for decades to the underclass of Arizona. How "Godly" was that? And what might we conclude that God may have done to confuse the Republicans into such an off-base nomination? You think God tried to fix it for them with Sarah Palin as VP, but somehow He couldn't get it done?
Nah. The more likely probability of divine providence--for those who want to believe in such things-- actually seems to rest on the side of Barack and Michelle.
How old are we?
I just can't believe that in 2009 people want to show their intellect in a public forum by calling the first lady ugly and racist. Wow! That's a new low. In those college papers she did a thesis about how black graduates from Princeton felt about racism and the school. In the 1980's the US was in a different place when it came to race relations. Duh!! So how could this be seen as racist? Find something else to talk about. I have an idea....let's talk about how inspiring the Obama's are to the WHOLE WORLD, not because of the color of their skin, but because of their relationship, faith, and overall care of other people. That's FANTASTIC. Positive thoughts....God Bless you, and God Bless America.
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