Michelle Obama was so happy after the 2015 ruling that legalized gay marriage that she snuck out of the White House to join celebrations going on outside, the former first lady revealed.
After the June 26, 2015, ruling that made same-sex marriage legal, the Obama administration celebrated by lighting the White House in rainbow colors. As NBC News noted, Michelle Obama and her younger daughter had their own celebration.
“We made our way down a marble staircase and over red carpets, around the busts of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin and past the kitchen until suddenly we were outdoors,” Michelle Obama wrote in her new memoir. “Malia and I just busted past the agents on duty, neither one of us making eye contact. The humid summer air hit our faces. I could see fireflies blinking on the lawn. And there it was, the hum of the public, people whooping and celebrating outside the iron gates.”
Michelle Obama said it took a total of 10 minutes to get out of the White House and to the celebrations outside, but she said it was worth it. In an interview with Ellen DeGeneres this week, Obama revealed that she didn’t want to miss out on celebrating the historic event.
While Michelle said she and her daughter made sure to stay out of sight of the crowds that gathered outside the White House gates to celebrate, she was still able to soak in the moment.
“We stood along with all the cheering crowd, off to the side, mind you, so no one would see us, with security surrounding us, and we tried to have our tender mother-daughter moment, but we just took it in,” she said. “I held her tight, and my feeling was, we are moving forward. Change is happening.”
The Obama administration had a number of steps forward for LGBT people, including an end to restriction on gays in the military and new protections for gay and transgender persons against workplace discrimination. Michelle Obama has become an advocate for LGBT causes as well.
Michelle Obama: “I could tell” Trump’s inauguration crowd was smaller than Barack’s https://t.co/drgyQTQxlQ pic.twitter.com/13G0I7R2OX
— The Hill (@thehill) November 16, 2018
Michelle Obama’s memoir has brought the former first lady back to the forefront of American politics. In the book, she shared her thoughts on her husband’s presidency and her displeasure with Donald Trump following him. The book has also ramped up speculation that Michelle Obama could consider a run for president in 2020, though she has continually denied that she has any desire to run.
