In her new memoir, Becoming, Michelle Obama opened up on many aspects of her life as first lady, including being the mother of growing teenage girls while her husband, Barack Obama, was running the country. Despite her daughters being under the constant watch of the Secret Service, Michelle Obama wrote that they could still enjoy some simple pleasures of teenhood, such as going to a high school prom.
Obama shared details of her eldest daughter's night in the spring of 2015. Malia Obama, who was 16 at the time, had only one request of her parents: "Just be cool please, OK?"
The former first lady revealed that Malia had been invited to prom by a "boy she kind of liked." Under their security detail, neither Malia nor her sister, Sasha, was allowed to travel in vehicles without being accompanied by the Secret Service, which made traveling to prom a particularly tricky prospect for Malia, who wanted to ride with her date to the school event.
Michelle Obama said she and her husband made an "exception" for prom and allowed Malia to break the rules for the special night. At their daughter's request, they also remained calm and cool when her date arrived to pick up Malia.
"On the appointed evening, her date arrived in his car, clearing security at the southeast gate of the White House, following the path and around the South Lawn by which heads of state and other visiting dignitaries normally arrived, and then gamely—bravely—walking into the Dip Room dressed in a black suit," Michelle Obama recalled in the book.
She went on to say Malia's "embarrassment had already [begun] to smolder" during the elevator ride to meet the boy with both parents in tow. "I was barefoot, and Barack was in flip-flops. Malia wore a long black skirt and an elegant bare-shouldered top. She looked beautiful and about 23 years old."
Her daughter still describes the moment her famous parents met her date as "a bit excruciating."
Nervous as Michelle Obama was for her daughter's prom, she did have a slice of comfort most parents aren't privy to. Secret Service were still on hand for the event, although no one rode in the same vehicle as Malia and her date. "Barack and I shook the young man's hand, snapped a few pictures, and gave our daughter a hug before sending them on their way," she wrote.
"We took what was perhaps unfair comfort in the knowledge that Malia's security detail would basically ride the boy's bumper all the way to the restaurant where they were going for dinner before the dance and would remain on quiet duty throughout the night."
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Michigan native, Janice Williams is a graduate of Oakland University where she studied journalism and communication. Upon relocating to New ... Read more
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