Michelle Obama’s DNC Speech Was a Reclamation and Proclamation of Black Womanhood

Last night, former First Lady Michelle Obama stepped on the DNC stage to deliver her remarks. The energy in the arena was electric. She could barely get a word out. America’s favorite political nonpolitician was about to open her mouth and the country was ready to hang on every word.

For many, Michelle Obama is emblematic of the country’s best values. Smart, dedicated to her family and country, empathetic, and kind, she has earned a reputation of being “exactly what the country needs” despite her ongoing resistance to such a path. In her speech, which many lauded as the best of the night, her words of wisdom, encouragement, and warning cut through the cheers and chants. That said, what was arguably more powerful was the implicit takeaway of Michelle Obama’s speech: Black womanhood matters.

Read More: A Full Transcript of Michelle Obama's Speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention

Back in 2008, Michelle Obama strolled onto the DNC convention stage dressed in a long-sleeve green dress complemented with a short straight bob. Her speech was praised widely for communicating the values of her family, the party, and the country. She stayed on message, not doing too much, but also not doing too little. The goal here was to not rock the boat because the boat itself was already unsteady. Michelle Obama is a Black woman with a biracial husband and two Black daughters. Any mistake, any slipup would be scrutinized, dissected, and exported as the sole representation of Black women everywhere. The room for error was nil. 

At this time, Michelle Obama had reason to subscribe to these thoughts. The headlines, which are hard to forget, chastised her toned arms and compared her to racial caricatures due to her unambiguous Black features. If she wore her braids, that could remind voters that she was indeed Black. If she showed her arms, critics would say she was a man. (It should be noted that other prominent Black women, such as Serena Williams, have faced similar attacks.) The barbs lobbed at Michelle Obama during that time were rooted in racism and sexism or misogynoir and aimed to separate her Blackness from her womanhood while attempting to punish her for both.

Black women know more than anyone what it’s like to be dehumanized and reduced to parts of our whole. We have long been seen as mammies, mules, aesthetics, tokens, and superheroes, oftentimes simultaneously. If we are not in service to someone or something, our value is debated, our competence challenged. What’s more, the obstacles faced by Black women daily are embedded into the structures and systems that line the pockets of the powerful. Despite our struggles being woven into the lives of everyone else, despite fighting for democracy time and time again, we are continually left behind.

Perhaps the Black woman who understands this most is Michelle Obama, a Black girl from the South Side of Chicago whose ordinary life led to extraordinary circumstances. As the first Black woman to enter the White House not as staff or guest, but as a resident, she was constantly disrespected despite her positioning. Those nasty headlines remained long after President Barack Obama won the election. She faced constant scrutiny for simply existing. 

Fast-forward to today and Michelle Obama is now seen as the woman who would “save us all” with her wit and commitment to the country. She is viewed as the ultimate uniter of the country. Many noted that if only she attempted to run for President, she would win by a landslide– a Black savior of sorts. 

Perhaps that is why her decision to stand unabashedly in her Black womanhood on Tuesday shifted something within me. See, on that stage, Michelle Obama’s evolution was on full display. She proudly wore her hair in a braided ponytail. She showed her famous toned arms by rocking a chic, sleeveless suit. She spoke at length about the influence of a Black woman – her late mother and the family’s matriarch, Marian Robinson – on her life. She referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “my girl” and called the American presidency a “Black job.” She noted Kamala Harris’ education at Howard University, one of the top historically Black universities in the country. All nods to the pride associated with being a Black woman.

What we bore witness to, besides a great speech filled with masterful prose and clear calls to action, was Michelle Obama becoming the physical embodiment of Congresswoman Maxine Waters’ phrase “reclaiming my time.” In this case, Michelle Obama was publicly reclaiming her Black womanhood, on the largest political stage, during a historic presidential run.

To understand the significance of this reclamation, you have to recognize that stages like that require Black women to hide parts of ourselves. Black women and girls are warned constantly not to be too much. I recall my own experiences growing up being told I was too loud or too disruptive. Even today, as a young Black woman studying policy and economics at Harvard, I’m told I’m too opinionated or too assertive. 

Michelle Obama choosing to be everything she is as a Black woman on a stage like the DNC was an act of defiance. In choosing to be an unapologetic Black woman, Michelle Obama not only did what she was there to do, making the case for a Kamala Harris presidency, but she also showed America what Black womanhood, in its full capacity, can look like at this level of leadership. It can look like joy. It can look like style. It can look like grief. It can look like reflection. It can look like affection. It can look like heritage. It can look like history. It can look like community. It can look like humanity. 

Black women, Michelle Obama told us, are human and deserve to be treated as such, whether we’re going about our daily lives or standing among some of the most powerful people in the world. As Kamala Harris continues her historic campaign, we would all do well to keep this message in mind.