‘I Went to Princeton and Harvard!’: Michelle Obama Complains About Being Known as ‘Barack Obama’s Wife’
Former First Lady Michelle Obama said she was frustrated that the public frequently enough reduced her identity to “Barack Obama’s wife,” overlooking her own extensive achievements and career before the White House – including degrees from Princeton and Harvard Law, practicing law, serving as an assistant to Chicago’s mayor, running a nonprofit, working as a vice president for community relations at the University of chicago Hospitals, and serving as dean of students.
She described how attention on her fashion and even details like her shoes eclipsed those accomplishments during the election and White House years,and explained that she chose to “lean in” by developing a strategy to ensure fashion had intentional meaning and impact rather than letting it define her.
On the podcast Call Her Daddy, Obama also urged mothers to stay on their career paths, arguing that children often don’t appreciate parental sacrifices once they grow up. In a separate discussion on “IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson,” she reflected on the broader challenges women face in America – the many “landmines, barriers, and don’ts” that limit girls and young women – and urged men raising daughters to recognize those constraints.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama complained that people solely viewed her as “Barack Obama’s wife” during a Wednesday episode of “Call Her Daddy.”
The former first lady graduated from both Princeton University and Harvard Law School and held multiple professional roles before entering the White House. She expressed frustration on the podcast about how being the former president’s wife overshadowed her personal accomplishments.
“People would be like, ‘Well, how do you know what to do in this role?’ And to me, it was clear that… you don’t know anything about what I did before I came here… But I was like, well, I went to Princeton and Harvard,” she said. “I mean, I practiced law. I was an assistant to the mayor in Chicago. I ran a nonprofit, a 501(c)(3)… I was a vice president for community relations at the University of Chicago Hospitals. I was a dean of students.”
“All of that just disappeared in the course of this whole election, and you now see me as just Barack Obama’s wife… That quickly my shoes become the most important thing about me… not unique to me, it can happen to the best of us,” she added. “So, I shied away from fashion leading the conversation. But I knew I didn’t completely control it. So, let’s lean in. Let’s lean in with what we do. Let’s make sure that we have a plan and a strategy in place for how fashion, just like everything we did in the White House, would have meaning and impact.”
She also argued during the podcast that mothers should maintain their careers because children fail to appreciate their sacrifices.
“Let’s be more honest about the struggle… I am constantly telling young mothers it’s coming. You don’t have to get off your career track. And I don’t even recommend it,” the former first lady said. “Because kids grow up fast. And then they’re gone. You’ve sacrificed everything. And you know, when they leave, they leave. They close the door and act like you never sacrificed.”
Moreover, the former first lady lamented the difficulties of being a woman in America during a July episode of “IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson.”
“Women, we have so many landmines, and barriers, and don’ts, and limitations… I think it’s important for all guys listening, especially men raising daughters, to realize that difference,” she said. “And inadvertently, as you are loving and raising these beautiful girls, there are so many rules that make us small.”
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