Michelle Obama Commencement Speech At University Of Arkansas At Pine Bluff
AP/Huffington Post First Posted: 05- 8-10 07:38 PM | Updated: 05- 8-10 07:57 PM
Michelle Obama Arkansas Pine Bluff Speech
First lady Michelle Obama speaks at commencement exercises at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in Pine Bluff, Ark., Saturday, May 8, 2010. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
PINE BLUFF, Ark. - Michelle Obama told graduates Saturday to prepare to overcome adversity, building on Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1958 commencement address at the same university, when he told students to summon their courage to fight segregation.
The first lady gave an impassioned speech to 270 graduates of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff that referenced the legacy of their historically black school, which opened in 1873 with seven students, most of whom could barely read.
Obama said those first students, only a decade removed from slavery, had no guarantee of opportunity once they graduated.
"Let's just imagine how those seven students would feel if they could see you here today," Obama told a packed downtown arena.
more/text of speech at link~
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/08/michelle-obama-commenceme_n_569078.html