WASHINGTON: Marian Robinson, mother of former US first lady Michelle Obam has died at 86, the Obama and Robinson families said in a statement. “With a healthy prod, Marian Robinson agreed to shift to the White House with Michelle and Barack Obama. We needed her. And she ended up being our rock through it all,” the family statement read, saying she passed away “peacefully” on Friday.
Born in 1937 on Chicago’s South Side, Marian Robinson was one of seven children. Her parents separated during her teenage years and she also witnessed the extreme highs and lows of race relations in the US.
She got married in 1960 and had two children, including Michelle Obam. She also worked as a teacher and a secretary; the family stated. During her eight years at the White House, the family stated that she would often sneak outside the gates to buy greeting cards at nearby stores and sometimes other customers would recognize her saying the woman resembled the first lady’s mother. “Oh, I get that a lot,” she would smile and reply.
