It all began in 1989, when Michelle Robinson was an associate at Sidley & Austin–the sixth-largest corporate law firm based in the United States. Michelle had just completed her first year in the firm as an intern when the buzz started. The word around the office was that there was a promising first-year law student who was—at the time—enrolled at Harvard, who would be joining the firm.1 Even though the office was buzzing with this hot news, Michelle kept in mind that first-year law students hardly ever get this type of opportunity, considering the size and degree of the firm. So she assumed he was some sort of super geeky nerd. She also assumed, because of their similarities—such as the law school they attended, and their alike characteristic of being a minority—that they would be paired to work together, with Michelle as his adviser.2
courtyard at Princeton University | Courtesy
of The Princeton Weekly Bulletin
When Michelle first heard about Barack, she said she “probably did what a lot of people do when they hear about Barack Obama.”3 She explained that she had been taken back by the name, unique in its entirety, and she wondered where he was from. As she read more into his biography, she learned a lot about him, including the fact that he grew up in Hawaii, and that he was biracial.
Barack was in fact placed under her wing a few days later, and Michelle took him out to lunch on his first day as a way to establish a professional relationship.4 Little did anybody know that one day they would be much more than just co-workers. Since she had already made the assumption that he was a weird nerd, Michelle was prepared for a geek to walk through the door. However, what happened was her future husband walked through the door, and out to lunch they went.
Even though the lunch outing on Barack’s first day at the firm went extremely well, and she was completely intrigued by his humorous, down-to-earth personality, one couldn’t smell the romance beginning just yet because Michelle was not open to dating anyone at this stage in her life.5
Even though she was positively surprised by the much cuter man that walked in—not the nerd she expected—and completely intrigued by him at their lunch outing, she knew she needed to be focused solely on her career.6 Besides the fact that they were co-workers, she was his adviser, and Michelle took that very seriously. Since she knew it would be wrong to pursue anything romantically in the office, she settled for a mere friendship with Barack.
But Barack wanted more than that. He insisted time after time on her letting him take her out on a date, and she told him, time and time again, no—because it wouldn’t be right. Barack’s persistence eventually led Michelle to agree on going out with him, under the circumstances that it would not be called a date.7
of Michelle Obama’s Instagram [@michelleobama]
After the negotiated “non-date” that anyone else in the world would consider a date—including them at the end of it—Michelle was completely head over heels for this man. And well, the rest is history—literally.9
- “How Michelle met Barack Obama,” YouTube, January 30, 2009. Accessed November 20, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exxrkOxnGjw. ↵
- “How Michelle met Barack Obama,” YouTube, January 30, 2009. Accessed November 20, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exxrkOxnGjw. ↵
- “How Michelle met Barack Obama,” YouTube, January 30, 2009. Accessed November 20, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exxrkOxnGjw. ↵
- “Michelle Obama,” Biography.com, November 08, 2017. Accessed November 20, 2017. https://www.biography.com/people/michelle-obama-307592. ↵
- Liza Mundy, “When Michelle Met Barack,” The Washington Post, October 5, 2008. Accessed November 20, 2017. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/10/03/ST2008100302144.html. ↵
- Liza Mundy, “When Michelle Met Barack,” The Washington Post, October 5, 2008. Accessed November 20, 2017. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/10/03/ST2008100302144.html. ↵
- Peter B. Slevin, Michelle Obama (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2015), 126. ↵
- “How Michelle met Barack Obama,” YouTube, January 30, 2009. Accessed November 20, 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exxrkOxnGjw. ↵
- Liza Mundy, “When Michelle Met Barack,” The Washington Post, October 5, 2008. Accessed November 20, 2017. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/10/03/ST2008100302144.html. ↵
88 comments
Cameron Lopez
This article stood out to me due to being one of the only articles of modern presidents or at least I can find and it makes you want to learn something new about our previous president. Now obviously when thinking of Obama you think of politics and what he has done for the United States but you never really learn about his personal life let alone love life. You can clearly see on tv and in reading like the internet and the paper that him and his wife are very close and have a strong connection with one another. To learn how them met it shows us that although he is one of the biggest figures of the United States to this day he is all human just like each of us and he found love in the way any person will.
Nicolas Vicinanza
Wow such a heartfelt story! Who can hate a love story? It was impressed by Barack’s persistence for Michelle because he would of never have been with her. His knowledge of the arts and his humor won Michelle over and it was a really simple and refreshing story. Love is hard to find, but it can show up at the most random of times.
Aracely Ortiz Soriano
The Obamas are the epitome of a power couple and it is interesting to learn about how they met because I feel it carries a lot of significance. They were both Harvard graduates who met at a very prestigious firm, yet they probably would have not met if they each did not follow their goals and ambitions. I liked how the article included how Michelle took her work very seriously and it’s funny in retrospect how she kept rejecting what in the future would be the President of the United States. It seemed destined that they should meet and it is undeniable how great a couple they are; with both of them being extremely supportive of each other and despite having so much power, being extremely down to earth.
Joshua Garza
The Obama’s love story is a very historical and warming one. I never thought Id come across an article like this to see President Obama’s flirtatious side with at the time his coworker Michelle Obama. I think this is a great article and gives insight on how the strong and powerful couple came together to be the President and First lady of America.
Alexandra Lopez
I am a fool for romance. Their story of love was one that will forever be one of my favorites. I enjoyed reading this to-the-point yet very well told article. I’m a sucker for love stories. I had never read about the Obama’s. I know there was a film made based off of this love story but I was never completely interested in watching the film but after reading this article, I might just watch it as soon as I get the chance. I thought this article was very cute and descriptive, especially with the visuals inserted. It’s crazy how people find love where they least expect it to be or how people meet each other and unknown to them, somewhere along the lines, they’re meant to be. Amazing article! (reposted)
Gabrien Gregory
There seems to be no greatr example of a powerhouse American couple, other than maybe the Gates, than the Obama’s. They are equally important in their ventures and both extremely intelligent. There could have been more information in this short article (unless it was meant to be short), but it is a good introduction to the Obama’s background. I appreciate our generation’s view of both of them as important, rather than Barack Obama alone being significant just because of his title. Michelle Obama has been a leading example for girls and all people around the country and around the world. Her background that brought her to accomplish these things matters.
Tyanne Pearcy
The Obama’s since their association in U.S executive branch in 2008 has been a family that I have looked up to and this article brings life to how it all started. It is crazy how smoothly their relationship seemed to develop as they seemed as though they were just friends hanging out. I love that they were able to sustain a professional relationship all these years and be able to watch each other gain a great deal of success.
Jose Fernandez
This article really caught my attention since the moment I read the title. When you hear about the Obamas, you think about their political life, but I didn’t know about how they met. I think this is a great topic for an article. This relationship has been very powerful during recent years, so it is important to know how it all began. We sometimes forget that they were regular people once.
Bictor Martinez
I knew that Obama and Michelle have together for a long time however I never knew the story behind in how they met and became so close. I like that Michelle expected a geek to enter the room when in reality it was her future soulmate. In the article it said that Michelle was not looking for relationships however, Obama was able to woo her off due to his great personality we have seen. I wonder what could have been if Michelle did not decide to open up to Obama in the beginning. Great article.
Lyzette Flores
Every time I see these two on either television or any type of social media, I can see that they are really in love. The way they look at each other gives it all away. I always enjoy hearing peoples love stories of how they met, especially if they were not expecting to fall in love. Since Michelle was Barack’s adviser, I wonder if it would have been any different if it was the other way around.