Former First Lady, Michelle Obama’s poise, beauty, sophistication, efforts and humbleness has been celebrated for years. Now, she is getting recognized for it. Mrs. Obama, who some affectionately call “our Forever First Lady” is headed to the Hall of Fame.
The National Women’s Hall of Fame called Obama “one of the most influential and iconic women of the 21st century,” noting she was the first Black woman to serve as first lady on top of her accomplishments as a lawyer, bestselling author and as an advocate for voting rights, nutrition and education.
The organization went on to say that, “both in and out of the White House,” the former first lady “has accomplished her initiatives and so much more.”
“During her eight years as First Lady, Michelle Obama helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, transforming the White House into the ‘People’s House.'” the organization stated. “Since leaving the White House, she has continued to have a profound public impact.”
The organization praised Obama for being a strong advocate for women and girls as she’s established multiple advocacy groups, including the Let’s Move! program focused on ending childhood obesity, the Reach Higher initiative to help students discover better job opportunities, the Joining Forces organization for veterans and Let Girls Learn, a program to support adolescent girls’ education.
At the start of Let’s Move!, President Obama established the first-ever Task Force on Childhood Obesity to develop a national action plan to mobilize the public and private sectors and engage families and communities in an effort to improve the health of our children.
During her tenure in the White House creating Let’s Move, Mrs. Obama:
- Transformed the school food environment through the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which updated school meal nutrition standards for the first time in 15 years and increased funding for the first time in 30 years. Through this law, American public schools offer healthier school meals and snacks for over 50 million kids. In addition, it increased the number of students who could get school meals at little or no cost.
- Launched the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate and MiPlato, easy-to-understand icons based on the five food groups, to help Americans make healthier choices.
- Increased access to fruits and vegetables through Let’s Move! Salad Bars to Schools, providing 3 million students with a a salad bar.
- Created Let’s Move! Outside in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Interior to encourage kids and families to take advantage of America’s great outdoors.
- …and so much more!
The former first lady also released her best-selling personal memoir “Becoming” in 2018 and won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word album.
Obama, 57, will be added alongside eight other women, including American soccer icon Mia Hamm, renowned science-fiction writer Octavia Butler, former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi and artists Joy Harjo and Judy Chicago.
Rebecca Halstead, the U.S. Military Academy’s first female graduate, will also be inducted, while famed NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson and 20th century abolitionist Emily Howland will be posthumously inducted.
This year’s induction ceremony will be held in person on Oct. 2 with COVID-19 protocols at the National Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls, N.Y.