Michelle Obama slammed Mississippi's anti-LGBT law in her commencement speech
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
First Lady Michelle Obama delivered a politically charged commencement speech Saturday at Jackson State University. She criticized the anti-LGBT law recently passed in Mississippi, which purports to protect religious freedom by allowing businesses to refuse service to same-sex couples.
"We see it right here in Mississippi — just two weeks ago — how swiftly progress can hurtle backward," ABC News reports Obama said. "How easy it is to single out a small group and marginalize them because of who they are or who they love."
President Obama also recently spoke out against the anti-LGBT law, as well as a similar one passed in North Carolina.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
