First Lady Michelle Obama delivered touching words, in what will be the last commencement speech of her tenure, to the graduates of City College of New York on Friday morning. In a speech that is sure to go down in history books, the First Lady talked about what it’s like waking up in the White House every morning:
“It’s the story that I witness every single day when I wake up in a house that was built by slaves, and I watch my daughters – two beautiful, black young women – head off to school, waving goodbye to their father, the President of the United States, the son of a man from Kenya who came here to American – to America for the same reasons as many of you: to get an education and improve his prospects in life.
She continues to address the audience by telling the story of President Obama’s Kenyan father and his quest to America to “improve his prospects in life.” Using the story of his father, she reminded many of the graduates of how far they had come and celebrated their future filled with promise.
Her words of wisdom didn’t stop there. “So, graduates, while I think it’s fair to say that our Founding Fathers never could have imagined this day, all of you are very much the fruits of their vision. Their legacy is very much your legacy and your inheritance. And don’t let anybody tell you differently. You are the living, breathing proof that the American Dream endures in our time. It’s you,” she said.
I don’t know about you, but that commencement speech is sure to inspire more than just the 2016 graduating class of CUNY. It also reminds us of the powerful words tweeted by Mother Oprah herself after interviewing Kerry Washington about Django.
Why could I weep? Because every free woman is the answer to a slave woman’s prayers.
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) December 10, 2012
..and THAT, Michelle Obama is. In fact we all are.
