Michelle Obama Encourages Followers to Honor MLK Day as She Skips Donald Trump's Inauguration

Mar. 15, 2025

Michelle Obamais celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy on a day with dual significance.

The former first lady —who previously announced she would not attend Donald Trump’s second inaugurationon Monday, Jan. 20 — posted a tribute for MLK Day while her husband,Barack Obama, and other former first couples piled into the U.S. Capitol for Trump’s swearing-in.

“Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of service always inspires me,” Obama, 61, wrote in anInstagram poston Monday morning.

Barack and Michelle Obama’s White House portraits are unveiled on Sept. 7, 2022.Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty

Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty

A source previously told PEOPLE that the former first lady is “not one to pretend for protocol’s sake,” regarding her decision not to attend the inauguration. The Obamas previously attended Trump’s 2017 inauguration, as they handed over the keys to the White House after eight years.

“There’s no overstating her feelings about [Trump],” the source told PEOPLE. “She’s not one to plaster on a pleasant face and pretend for protocol’s sake.”

“Michelle doesn’t do anything because it’s expected or it’s protocol or it’s tradition,” the source continued.

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Mrs. Obamadid not attend former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral, either, where she would have been seated beside President-elect Trump. At the time, her advisers attributed her unexpected absence to a scheduling conflict, stating that she was in Hawaii on an extended vacation.

Obama devoted the 2024 campaign cycle to expressing her concerns about Trump’s vision for America.

“She served in the public eye and did all the public good that she could for eight years as first lady,” the source says of her fulfilling her official responsibilities in 2017. “You’ll see her when she has a project or cause to promote but she doesn’t feel the need to be a public figure anymore.”

source: people.com