Michelle Obama
Get to know the new first lady | Michelle Obama. See pictures of her life leading up to her new role in the White House.
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Portrait of a First Lady - Michelle Obama says now that her husband Barack has been elected president, as First Lady she will focus on helping working women and families, particularly military families.
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Portrait of a First Lady - Michelle LaVaughn Robinson was born January 17, 1964 in Chicago to Fraser and Marian Robinson. Her father was a city water plant employee and Democratic precinct captain, and her mother a secretary at Spiegel’s catalog store.
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Portrait of a First Lady - Michelle attended Whitney Young High School, where she was on the honor roll four years and was a member of the National Honor Society and student council.
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Portrait of a First Lady - She was a high school classmate of Santita Jackson, the daughter of Jesse Jackson.
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Portrait of a First Lady - Michelle Obama went to Princeton and studied sociology and African American studies. She graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in 1985. She wrote a thesis titled, "Princeton-Educated Blacks and the Black Community."
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Portrait of a First Lady - She obtained her Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School in 1988. While at Harvard, she participated in political demonstrations advocating the hiring of more minority professors.
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Portrait of a First Lady - Following law school, she was an associate at the Chicago office of the law firm Sidley Austin. At the firm, she worked on marketing and intellectual property.
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Portrait of a First Lady - She met Barack Obama when they were among very few African Americans at their law firm. She was assigned to mentor him while he was a summer associate. Their relationship started with a business lunch and then a community organization meeting where he first impressed her.
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Portrait of a First Lady - On the couple's first date, they went to see Spike Lee’s movie, "Do the Right Thing."
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Portrait of a First Lady - Barack and Michelle married in October 1992. They now have two daughters, Malia Ann (born 1998) and Natasha (known as Sasha, born 2001).
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