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In speaking at Spelman’s commencement ceremony this past weekend, First Lady Michelle Obama talked directly to the members of her husband’s most loyal electorate – Black females. In 2008, there was no larger voting bloc that helped Barack Obama become president than Black women. Turnout at the polls among black women in 2008 was 68 percent.

With the Obama’s successful political and legal careers – and their strong emphasis on parenting, education, and religion – many in this generation liken the Obama’s to the real-life version of the fictional iconic black couple, Cliff and Clair Huxtable.

In the late 80’s, the duo of Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad represented the Black version of the American dream on The Cosby Show. Rashad, who played the role of Claire, shared the stage with Obama on Sunday, receiving an honorary doctorate degree.

While she gracefully declined to comment directly on the comparison, she called Obama “a great lady who represents many of the ideals of womanhood as powerful, dynamic, creative and nurturing.”

In an era where having it all — husband, career, children — is a bigger challenge than ever before for black women, here comes Michelle Obama. That’s why she excited this generation of Spelman about their own possibilities, without even trying to.

What do you think of the comparisons? Are they accurate or do you find them to be offensive in some manner?

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