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Politics

Obamas Recall Chicago Racism in Interview

December 17, 2014 2:35pm | Updated December 17, 2014 2:35pm
President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama talked about racism with People magazine last week.
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CHICAGO — President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama talked about racism with People magazine last week — and revealed that they, too, were victims of it long before they ended up in the White House.

The magazine will release the full interview Friday, but in an excerpt posted online Wednesday, the Obamas talked about the everyday racism the experienced in Chicago.

"Before [The White House], Barack Obama was a black man that lived on the South Side of Chicago, who had his share of troubles catching cabs," the first lady told the magazine.

The president agreed, saying he's been mistaken for a "waiter at a gala."

"There's no black male my age, who's a professional, who hasn't come out of a restaurant and is waiting for their car and somebody didn't hand them their car keys," said the president.

The conversation comes as protests and debates about racism continue across the country following the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.

Click here for People magazine's report.

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