Michelle Obama Worries About 'Who We Want To Be As A Country' In Live ‘IMO' Podcast At SXSW
Appearing onstage at SXSW today, Michelle Obama never mentioned Donald Trump by name, but the former First Lady certainly tried to capture the tone of our times.
'We know people are going through some tough times, and I don't think Craig and I are feeling any different than anyone out there,' Obama told the Austin audience of about 2,500 Thursday in a live recording of a new podcast series, IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson with her brother.
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President Barack Obama and President Bill Clinton have been largely AWOL since a retaliation fueled Trump was sworn in on January 20, so the anticipation around Obama and National Association of Basketball Coaches executive director Robinson's podcast was high after it was first unveiled earlier this week.
The first significant public appearance by Michelle Obama, who missed both Jimmy Carter's funeral and the Inauguration since last year's election, saw the ex-First Lady leaning deftly into her target market today at SXSW.
'You know, we're dealing with a lot of uncertainties. I for one, feel for folks who are struggling and will continue to struggle in these uncertainties,' the best-selling Becoming author added. 'I worry about folks being on work, and I worry about how we think about diversity and inclusion. I think about how we treat one another and the voices that we hear, and what that does, what models that setting for the next generation. Who do we want to be as a country? All of that keeps me up at night, and I know that a lot of people are struggling with some of those things, but I find in those moments that it is better not to try to figure that stuff out alone.'
A passionate surrogate for Kamala Harris' unsuccessful White House campaign against Trump last year, Obama has said that March 12 debuting IMO, produced Higher Ground, the media company that Obama founded with her husband won't get into retail politics. However, as much the savvy ex-First Lady and her former Brown University basketball coach Robinson focused on 'some of the lessons we learned growing up,' advice from their father about how to face adversity, and personal interactions over the years, the specter of Trump 2.0 was never truly that far from mind.
Noting 'we still live in a world where science matters' while introducing guest Dr. Laurie Santos, director of Yale University's Comparative Cognition Laboratory, Obama earlier talked about seeing power up-close and putting it in perspective. 'There are a handful of people in the world who can do a few things that can impact so many,' she noted in the first IMO live recording. 'But the truth is, is that the small power that each of us has to do something right in front of us, if we're all doing that… outweighs anything that, you know, some big leader somewhere can do.'
With a clear reference to the slew of plane crashes since the civil service gutting Trump returned to office, Obama went on to say: 'From my experience, the folks who are working on the ground and picking up our garbage and making sure that our, you know, schools run and that our air is clean, and that our flights stay up in the air, that those people are the true heart and blood of the country.'
Future IMO guests include Keke Palmer, Seth and Lauren Rogen and Jay Shetty. Tyler Perry, Glennon Doyle and Abby Wambach, Elaine Welteroth, Tracee Ellis Ross, Angie Martinez, Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union, Logan Ury and Brian Chesky will also be on the first season of the podcast
IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson will be available on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and elsewhere.
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