michelle obama thesis review

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Princeton Releases Michelle Obama's Senior Thesis

February 26, 2008 / 8:18 PM EST / UWIRE.com

This story was written by Esther Breger, The Daily Princetonian

The campaign of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), her husband, received criticism from conservative media and bloggers when the University restricted access to her senior thesis until after the presidential election in November.

"A thesis can be restricted or unrestricted for a variety of reasons, including at the request of alumni," University spokeswoman Cass Cliatt '96 said in an e-mail. "It falls within the purview of alumni to discuss their academic work," she said.

Analysis of the thesis' content, in addition to its restricted availability, has featured prominently in blogs over the last few days. Written under Obama's maiden name of Michelle LaVaughn Robinson and titled "Princeton-Educated Blacks and the Black Community," the thesis has come under scrutiny as the presidential campaign has advanced for its analysis of race relations.

What's in the thesis?

Obama, who concentrated in sociology and received a certificate in African-American studies, examined how the attitudes of black alumni have changed over the course of their time at the University. "Will they become more or less motivated to benefit the Black community?" Obama wrote in her thesis.

After surveying 89 black graduates, Obama concluded that attending the University as an undergraduate decreased the extent to which black alumni identified with the black community as a whole.

Obama drew on her personal experiences as an example.

"As I enter my final year at Princeton, I find myself striving for many of the same goals as my White classmates -- acceptance to a prestigious graduate school or a high-paying position in a successful corporation," she wrote, citing the University's conservative values as a likely cause.

"Predominately White universities like Princeton are socially and academically designed to cater to the needs of the White students comprising the bulk of their enrollments," she said, noting the small size of the African-American studies department and that there were only five black tenured professors at the University across all departments.

Obama studied the attitudes of black Princeton alumni to determine what effect their time at Princeton had on their identification with the black community. "My experiences at Princeton have made me far more aware of my 'Blackness' than ever before," she wrote in her introduction. "I have found that at Princeton no matter how liberal and open-minded some of my White professors and classmates try to be toward me, I sometimes feel like a visitor on campus; as if I really don't belong."

Emeritus sociology professor Walter Wallace, who served as her thesis adviser, declined to comment for this story.

"It is important to consider the time period in which Michelle Obama wrote her thesis," College Democrats vice president Scott Weingart '09 said in an e-mail. "In 1985, Princeton was still a very conservative school; [Tiger Inn] would not admit women members for another six years. Today, the student body is a lot more progressive and diverse."

Completed theses are kept in Mudd Manuscript Library and are generally available to the public for viewing and scanning. Before today, callers to Mudd requesting information on Obama's thesis were told that the thesis has been made "temporarily unavailable" and were directed to the University Office of Communications. Following the thesis' release by the Obama campaign to politico.com, a political news site, the University lifted the restriction.

The University's actions were met with varying reactions by students.

"The school shoud generally default to freedom of information unless there is some compelling school or personal (e.g. the request of the author) interest at stake," Jason Anton '10, co-director of the Students for Barack Obama Princeton chapter, said in an e-mail.

"There's nothing about a senior thesis that's private in nature -- it's written with the knowledge that it will be kept in Mudd for all to read," Zahava Stadler '11 said.

Many students felt that the contents of the work could become a factor in the election, but they were unsure to what extent it would affect the outcome.

"Unfortunately, the thesis may very well revive the race card as a central theme of the election," Anton said.

"Her thesis seems especially pertinent given the questions that have been raised off and on about the supposed 'tight-rope' of racial identity politics that some claim Senator Obama has to carefully navigate," College Democrats president Rob Weiss '09 said in an e-mail.

Molly Alarcon '10, an Obama supporter, said she thought Michelle Obama's writing in college should not have any bearing on her husband's election, but her view was not shared by all students.

More from CBS News

Was Michelle Obama's Thesis Restricted Until After the 2008 Election?

The availability of michelle obama's senior thesis fluctuated throughout the 2008 presidential campaign., david mikkelson, published march 31, 2008.

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In early 2008 Princeton University placed a restriction on access to Michelle Obama's senior thesis that was stated as lasting until the day after the presidential election of November 2008.

Princeton lifted the restriction on access to the thesis in March of 2008.

In every U.S. presidential election campaign, the two major parties' candidates become the subjects of prolonged and intense scrutiny, with seemingly everything they've ever said or done becoming fodder for endless analysis, interpretation and criticism. The scrutiny doesn't always stop with the candidates themselves, however — their parents, siblings, children, and other close associates sometimes find themselves the subjects of fervent investigation as well.

Candidates' spouses, in particular, are often a subject of great interest. Not only are they relatives that candidates have "chosen," but they live with the candidates day in and day out, and they sometimes serve as political surrogates by stumping for their husbands or wives on the campaign trail. They probably know the inner workings of the candidates' minds better than anyone else, and they're presumed to be important sources of advice, counsel, and influence. All of this means that the senior thesis of Michelle Obama, wife of Illinois senator (and leading Democratic presidential contender) Barack Obama would naturally be a subject of considerable interest, especially since the subject of that thesis is itself a significant political topic. The former Michelle LaVaughn Robinson, who graduated from Princeton University in 1985 with a B.A. in sociology (and later earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1988), wrote her senior undergraduate thesis on the subject of "Princeton-Educated Blacks and the Black Community."

Michelle Obama's thesis became a matter of controversy (outside of its subject matter) in early 2008 when some interested parties who attempted to retrieve its content were informed by Princeton that access to the thesis had been restricted until after the presidential election in November 2008. Regardless of the reasons behind it, such a restriction naturally engendered suspicion that someone or something (in this case, presumably the Obama campaign itself) had a vested interest in keeping the information from reaching the public, which in turn served to heighten interest in the contents of the thesis.

The Daily Princetonian noted that prior to 26 February 2008 "callers to Mudd [Manuscript Library] requesting information on Obama's thesis were told that the thesis has been made 'temporarily unavailable' and were directed to the University Office of Communications," but the university lifted that restriction after the Obama campaign made a copy of the thesis available through the web site Politico .

As for the content of the thesis, the Daily Princetonian summarized it thusly:

Obama, who concentrated in sociology and received a certificate in African-American studies, examined how the attitudes of black alumni have changed over the course of their time at the University. "Will they become more or less motivated to benefit the Black community?" Obama wrote in her thesis. After surveying 89 black graduates, Obama concluded that attending the University as an undergraduate decreased the extent to which black alumni identified with the black community as a whole. Obama drew on her personal experiences as an example. "As I enter my final year at Princeton, I find myself striving for many of the same goals as my White classmates — acceptance to a prestigious graduate school or a high-paying position in a successful corporation," she wrote, citing the University’s conservative values as a likely cause. "Predominately White universities like Princeton are socially and academically designed to cater to the needs of the White students comprising the bulk of their enrollments," she said, noting the small size of the African-American studies department and that there were only five black tenured professors at the University across all departments. Obama studied the attitudes of black Princeton alumni to determine what effect their time at Princeton had on their identification with the black community. "My experiences at Princeton have made me far more aware of my 'Blackness' than ever before," she wrote in her introduction. "I have found that at Princeton no matter how liberal and open-minded some of my White professors and classmates try to be toward me, I sometimes feel like a visitor on campus; as if I really don't belong."

Much scrutiny and discussion has been focused on a single phrase contained within the thesis, the statement that "blacks must join in solidarity to combat a white oppressor." This phrase has repeatedly been quoted out of context and presented as if it reflected Michelle Obama's own philosophy, but in its full context it is clearly her speculation about what she thought some of the respondents she surveyed for her thesis (i.e., students who had attended Princeton in earlier years) might have been feeling:

As discussed earlier, most respondents were attending Princeton during the 70's, at a time when the Black Power Movement was still influencing the attitudes of many Blacks. It is possible that Black individuals either chose to or felt pressure to come together with other Blacks on campus because of the belief that Blacks must join in solidarity to combat a White oppressor. As the few blacks in a white environment it is understandable that respondents might have felt a need to look out for one another.

Breger, Esther. "U. Releases Obama '85's Senior Thesis." The Daily Princetonian. 26 February 2008.

Heyboer, Kelly. "Analyzing Michelle Obama's Princeton Thesis." The [New Jersey] Star-Ledger. 29 February 2008.

Ressner. Jeffrey. "Michelle Obama Thesis Was on Racial Divide." Politico . 23 February 2008.

By David Mikkelson

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.

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Digging up dirt on Michelle Obama

SUMMARY: E-mailers go after Sen. Barack Obama by digging into his wife's college years. They take Michelle Obama's senior thesis and add their own fabrication.

There seems to be no shortage of serious issues for this campaign season, but lurking in e-mail accounts are attacks on the candidates' biographies. Sen. Barack Obama has been a particular target of anonymous e-mail; we at PolitiFact have received more negative e-mails about him than any other candidate, by a significant margin. Typically, e-mails portray him as unpatriotic and un-American. The latest chain e-mail involves his wife.

The e-mail looks at a research paper Michelle Obama wrote while a student at Princeton University 23 years ago. It takes a few actual sentences out of context, and fabricates a few quotes that don't exist in her work.

The e-mail begins:

"In her senior thesis at Princeton, Michele Obama, the wife of Barack Obama stated that America was a nation founded on 'crime and hatred.' Moreover, she stated that whites in America were 'ineradicably racist.' The 1985 thesis, titled 'Princeton-Educated Blacks and the Black Community' was written under her maiden name, Michelle LaVaughn Robinson."

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Later the e-mail opines, "Michele (sic) Obama clearly has a chip on her shoulder. Not only does she see separate black and white societies in America, but she elevates black over white in her world."

But nowhere in the thesis does Michelle Obama write the words "crime and hatred" or that whites are "ineradicably racist." The e-mail does get the thesis title, her maiden name and the year correct. It also uses real quotations from the thesis, though a few are taken out of context.

The thesis is available on the Internet; the politics news site Politico reported on it in February and posted a copy it had obtained from Princeton University .

We downloaded a copy, which appears to be complete with no numbered pages missing. We read it, but we did not find the phrases the e-mail describes. We took the additional step of scanning the document through optical character recognition software so we could search its text electronically. An automated search did not find the words "crime," "hatred," "hate," "ineradicably," or "racist" in the document.

Every senior at Princeton writes a thesis or finishes an independent project. Famous alumni who wrote undergraduate theses at Princeton include New Yorker editor David Remnick ("The Sympathetic Thread: 'Leaves of Grass' 1855-1865") and Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito ("An Introduction to the Italian Constitutional Court"). Obama wrote her thesis as part of a bachelor's degree in sociology and graduated with honors, according to Princeton University's Department of Sociology Web site.

Sociology uses scientific methods to study human group behavior. In Obama's thesis, she sought to quantify how the attitudes of black Princeton alumni changed after graduation in regard to race relations and social change. Obama was especially interested in the attitudes of Princeton alumni in regard to improving the lives of lower-income blacks.

To document the change in attitudes, Obama devised an 18-question survey and mailed it to black alumni. Her thesis is a discussion of her methodology and an analysis of the results. It contains a limited amount of personal opinion in the introduction, including the sentence the e-mail cites. Here is a fuller excerpt:

"Earlier in my college career, there was no doubt in my mind that as a member of the Black community I was somehow obligated to this community and would utilize all of my present and future resources to benefit this community first and foremost. My experiences at Princeton have made me far more aware of my 'Blackness' than ever before. I have found that at Princeton no matter how liberal and open-minded some of my White professors and classmates try to be toward me, I sometimes feel like a visitor on campus; as if I really don't belong. Regardless of the circumstances under which I interact with Whites at Princeton, it often seems as if, to them, I will always be Black first and a student second."

Obama's perceptions have been supported at least in part by recent reporting: Obama's freshmen-year roommate tried to change rooms upon arrival at Princeton because her mother was horrified that Obama was black , according to a report in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

But Obama writes a few paragraphs later that her earlier assumptions were changing, too:

"At the same time, however, it is conceivable that my four years of exposure to a predominately White, Ivy League University has instilled within me certain conservative values. For example, as I enter my final year at Princeton, I find myself striving for many of the same goals as my White classmates — acceptance to a prestigious graduate or professional school or a high paying position in a successful corporation. Thus, my goals after Princeton are not as clear as before."

The rest of the thesis goes on to discuss survey methodology such as independent variables, dependent variables and sample size, then summarizes the survey response. Obama found that black alumni identified with the black community the most during their years at Princeton, moreso than either before or afterward, and she discusses a number of possible reasons for the survey results.

Certainly, Obama's thesis is race-conscious. But it does not include anything that can fairly be described as antiwhite invective.

But should a candidate's wife's undergraduate course work from 23 years ago be fair game in the election? Even academics have mixed feelings about it, according to the news Web site InsideHigherEd.com , because the work is typically that of someone who has just recently entered adulthood.

Political observers have questioned the relevance of a spouse's academic work.

When the thesis became public in February 2008, it was a topic on the Fox News show Hannity & Colmes . Former Republican Sen. Rick Santorum, a noted conservative and a commentator for the network, said on the show he thought her thesis work wasn't relevant to the current campaign.

"First off, a spouse's personal life is out of bounds, period, end of discussion," Santorum said. "This is something that she did at an age when you write some pretty strange stuff sometimes. I hope they don't pull up my college thesis papers."

"If she's out, as she was on the campaign trail, speaking on behalf of her husband, and she says something at that point and it's in the public policy realm, fine, then that's a legitimate point," he added. "But to dig out someone's past, (it's) out of bounds. Leave it alone, move on."

Republicans may be more sensitive this year about issues of a spouse's past because of Cindy McCain's history with a painkiller addiction. McCain was stealing pills from a medical charity she ran and the incident became public in 1994. No charges were filed, and she reimbursed the charity, but the incident received national press coverage at the time.

Obama himself has defended his wife, not for her thesis but for other attacks made against her on the campaign trial, saying people should not attack his wife.

Obama said he found it "unacceptable" that the Republican Party should attack his wife or children, responding to a Tennessee state party ad that targeted Michelle Obama.

"Michelle is the most honest, the best person I know. She is one of the most caring people I know. She loves this country. And for them to try to distort or to play snippets of her remarks in ways that are unflattering to her I think is just low class. And I think most of the American people would think that as well," Obama said.

Our Sources

Politico, Michelle Obama thesis was on racial divide , Feb. 22, 2008

Princeton University, The senior thesis

Princeton University, Senior theses and Ph.D. dissertations

Princeton University, Sociology Department

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgian recalls rooming with Michelle Obama , April 13, 2008

Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Roommate story resonates strongly across racial lines , April 19, 2008

Fox News Network, Hannity & Colmes transcript, Feb. 25, 2008

Associated Press, Senator's Wife Admits Prescription Drug Addiction, Aug. 22, 1994

Good Morning America, Interview with Barack Obama transcript, May 19, 2008

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Michelle Obama’s Becoming is an insight into inequality, feminism and a FLOTUS who broke the mould

Associate Professor of American Politics, De Montfort University

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Time magazine described it as a tour “fit for a rock star” . This is not how book promotional outings are usually billed – but then this is no ordinary tome. The memoirs of Michelle Obama comprise one half of a US$65m joint publishing deal for the former first couple’s autobiographies.

One measure of predicted global interest is that Michelle Obama’s book, Becoming , will be translated into 28 languages. The month-long tour plan is bold, taking in ten major arenas, with an all-star line-up of moderators including Oprah Winfrey, author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, businesswoman Valerie Jarrett, actress Sarah Jessica Parker and more. One is left in absolutely no doubt that the legacy of this First Lady stands robustly alongside that of her husband. Very few of her predecessors can make this claim.

Before Barack Obama entered public life, Michelle was his mentor. When he was elected to the Senate, she earned more than him . Many said that she was smarter than him, and he was very smart indeed.

The American Dream

Michelle Obama is a potent symbol of what is good about America. She reminds us that an African American girl from the poorer end of town has the potential to do and be anything. And not to simply become First Lady, which was a role forced upon her. By determination and hard work, she got to Harvard and Princeton and carved out a highly successful career in her own right.

When obliged to embrace the role of presidential wife, her reluctance was palpable in those early days. Such caution was well founded. Her dynamism and ability were on display throughout the 2008 election, and she campaigned energetically for her husband. But even prior to his victory, she got a taste of the vitriol that would come later. In one unguarded moment, for example, she said during the presidential primaries in 2008 :

For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country because it feels like hope is finally making a comeback.

Her comments were made in relation to high voter turnout in the primaries but her opponents were not concerned with the context. Immediately, she was chastised and the criticism from some quarters continued unabated.

The ‘Angry Black Woman’

Traditionally, the First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) has been presented as an appendage of the president, whose priority was spousal loyalty, whatever the challenges involved. She spent her time entertaining, engaging in charitable endeavours, and attempting to provide some sort of normality to children being raised in a profoundly abnormal environment.

Adichie talked of Michelle Obama having to “flatten herself” to better fit the mould of First Lady. She reminds us that because Michelle Obama did not smile constantly and vacuously, but only when she felt like it, she was given that cheapest of derogatory labels – the Angry Black Woman. Adichie added :

Women, in general, are not permitted anger – but from black American women, there is an added expectation of interminable gratitude, the closer to groveling the better, as though their citizenship is a phenomenon that they cannot take for granted.

In Michelle Obama, the nation suddenly was faced with this stunning, independent entity – and not everyone was pleased. Others, however, were thrilled as they watched her blow the doors off what was previously the suffocating confines of the First Lady’s office.

FLOTUS and Feminism

Prior to Michelle Obama, the First Lady story was too often one of wonderful, capable, intelligent women being shoe-horned into a claustrophobic position with no formal office, portfolio, title or, of course, salary. They simply had to button their lips and smile. But Michelle Obama revolutionised the role of the First Lady and, as a result, it’s as though feminism has finally been recognised as a part of what the FLOTUS could be.

We must also now recognise the meaningful impact that a First Lady can have in getting legislation passed, and implementing significant policy change. However humble Michelle Obama’s family origins on the South Side of Chicago were, she has a platform like few others, and she uses her voice to promote a positive message on a range of key issues, including her FLOTUS project on child health and nutrition. Indeed, she reveals in the book how she offered her successor, Melania Trump, help or advice – a gesture so far ignored by Mrs Trump .

In her final year as First Lady, one Gallup poll reported a 64% approval rating for her (noticeably higher than that of her husband). In her post-White House role, Michelle Obama’s approval ratings have remained strong and even increased since she left the White House . When compared to her deeply uncontroversial predecessors, such as Laura or Barbara Bush, however, her poll numbers were relatively low. It’s clear that anyone who pushes boundaries and breaks down barriers isn’t not going to please everyone. Hillary Clinton learned this lesson the hardest of ways, when she lost the presidency to Donald Trump.

But Michelle Obama is extraordinarily relatable, down to earth, too. It’s refreshing to see in her memoir, for example, an acknowledgement that when their marriage needed it, the Obamas sought professional help.

Michelle has continuously demonstrated the capacity to lead by example, to balance conflicting roles, to raise two strong and capable daughters, and to clearly still be in a loving marriage, despite the strain that comes with eight years of scrutiny and criticism. In the words of her husband :

The way in which she blended purpose and policy with fun so that she was able to reach beyond Washington on her health care initiatives, on her military family work was masterful.

She remains an inspiration for future First Ladies, and women and girls everywhere.

Barack Obama
Michelle Obama

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University Archives

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Dear Mr. Mudd: What Information Do You Have about Michelle Obama’s Time at Princeton?

By Christa Cleeton with April C. Armstrong *14 and Dan Linke

Dear Mr. Mudd,

Nassau Herald entry of Michelle Robinson

In the database, one can also find a few references to Obama’s role as a member-at-large of the Governance Board of the Third World Center (now the Carl Fields Center ), to which she was elected in 1983 , and to her membership on the Undergraduate Student Government’s Standing Committee on Race Relations.

The University Archives has two photos of Obama located in Princeton’s yearbooks: The Freshman Herald (below) and The Nassau Herald (top of this post).

Last year, student employee Iliyah Coles ’22 found another photo that appears to be of Obama in the May 7, 1984 issue of The Vigil alongside Joey Harris ’85. The Vigil was the newsletter of Princeton University’s Third World Center (now the Carl Fields Center). The caption that accompanied the photograph congratulated Harris on his election as chair of the Center’s Governance Board.

The Vigil is found in the Princeton University Publications Collection (AC364).

There are a few other photos of Obama you may have seen online that she has shared herself, one of her in front of Firestone Library on her Instagram page and another of her near a dorm publicized through various media outlets . These are not held within our collections.

January 6, 2021 update: An additional photograph of Obama from her Freshman Orientation Program has been identified. To view it, please see today’s blog on this topic .

Christa Cleeton