MICHELLE OBAMA

Michelle Obama naceu en Chicago o 17 de xaneiro de 1964. A súa familia ten antepasados nacidos na escravitude. Os seus pais valoraban moito a súa educación, e na escola uniuse a un programa para nenos con talento. Cando era unha estudiante, fixo frente a discriminación por motivos de xénero, de raza e tamén de clase económica, pero ela ignoraba calqueira tipo de negatividade, pois estaba decidida a demostra-lo seu valor. En 1985 Graduouse cum laude en Socioloxía e Estudos Afroamericanos na Universidade de Princeton, e en 1988 graduouse na Harvard Law School.

Despois voltou a Chicago a traballar no bufete Sidley & Austin, onde se especializou na lei de propiedade intelectual; alí coñeceu a Barack Obama en 1989, que fora contratado como becario no verán, mentres que ela fora asignada coma a súa titora.

Máis tarde, buscou orienta-la súa carreira ó servizo público, e en 1991 converteuse en asistente do alcalde de Chicago Richard M. Daley. Despois traballou coma comisionada asistente de planificación e desenvolvemento para a cidade de Chicago, e máis tarde, nunha organización sen ánimo de lucro.

En 1996 Michelle comezou a traballar como decana asociada de servizos dos estudiantes na Universidade de Chicago, onde axudou a organizar os programas de extensión comunitaria.

En 2002 converteuse en directora executiva de asuntos externos e comunitarios, e en 2005 en vicepresidenta de asuntos externos e comunitarios para o Centro Médico da Universidade de Chicago.

En 2008 Barack anunciou a súa candidatura presidencial demócrata, e Michelle adoptou un papel destacado na súa campaña.

Foi a primeira muller afroamericana que serviu como Primeira Dama dos Estados Unidos, dende 2009 ata 2017, e converteuse nun referente e nunha poderosa defensora das mulleres e nenas nos Estados Unidos e en todo o mundo. Traballou pola concienciación sobre a pobreza, a educación, a actividade física e a alimentación saudable, e apoiando ás familias dos militares.

Na campaña electoral presidencial de 2016 apoiou á candidata demócrata, Hillary Clinton. Observando o ton groseiro da campaña, Michelle afirmou “Cando eles caen baixo, nós elevámonos”. Clinton perdeu finalmente ante o republicano Donald Trump, que suxerira repetida e falsamente que Barack non era un cidadán nacido nos Estados Unidos.

Despois de que o mandato do seu marido rematase, Michelle mantivo un perfil público relativamente baixo. Nembargantes, en 2018 publicou a súa autobiografía “Becoming”, na que escribeu sobre as súas raíces, sobre cómo atopou a súa voz e cómo chegou a convertirse no que ela aspiraba a ser.

Nas súas palabras, “Ningún país pode prosperar nunca de verdade se reprime o potencial das súas mulleres e se priva a sí mesmo das contribucións da metade dos seus cidadáns.”

Michelle Obama was born in Chicago on January 17, 1964. Her family has ancestors born in slavery. Her parents valued her education much, and in the school she joined a program for talented children. When she was a student, she faced discrimination based on gender, race and economic class, but she ignored any type of negativity, as she was determined to prove her value. In 1985 she graduated cum laude in Sociology and Afro-American Studies from Princeton University, and in 1988 she graduated from Harvard Law School.

She then returned to Chicago to work at the Sidley & Austin law firm, where she specialized in intellectual property law; there she met Barack Obama in 1989, who had been hired as an intern in the summer, while she had been assigned as his tutor.

Later, he sought to orient her career to public service, and in 1991 she became assistant to the Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley. She then worked as an assistant commissioner of planning and development for the city of Chicago, and later, in a non-profit organization.

In 1996 Michelle began working as an associate dean of students services at the University of Chicago, where she helped organize community outreach programs.

In 2002 she became executive director of external and community affairs, and in 2005 she became vice president of external and community affairs for the University of Chicago Medical Center.

In 2008, Barack announced his democrat presidential candidacy, and Michelle took a leading role in his campaign.

She was the first African American woman to serve as First Lady of the United States, from 2009 to 2017, and she has become a referent and a powerful advocate for women and girls in the United States and around the world. She worked raising awareness about poverty, education, physical activity and healthy eating, and supporting the military families.

In the 2016 presidential election campaign she supported the democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Watching the rude tone of the campaign, Michelle said "When they go low, we go high." Clinton finally lost to the republican Donald Trump, who had repeatedly and falsely suggested that Barack was not an United States - born citizen.

After her husband's term ended, Michelle kept a relatively low public profile. However, in 2018 she published her autobiography "Becoming", where she wrote about his roots, about how she found her voice and how she got to become who she aspired to be.

In her words, "No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half of its citizens."