Michelle Obama Talks Let's Move! & African American Health: Russ Parr Radio Interview

First Lady spotlights Presidential Collard Greens...
First Lady Michelle Obama spoke about the challenges of obesity in the African American community, her Let's Move! campaign and the importance of her Kitchen Garden in an "exclusive" interview with Russ Parr, host of the Russ Parr Morning Show on Black Planet Radio. The 8-minute call-in was taped the day after the First Lady replanted her Kitchen Garden for Spring, and Mrs. Obama said the vegetable plot is the educational "platform" on which her child health efforts are built. She touted the positive response to her campaign, which marked its second anniversary in February.

"The conversation has really...changed since...we've come into office," Mrs. Obama said.

The First Lady emphasized that the black community must be aware of the risk of obesity, and noted that she got her own heads-up on her daughters' potential for becoming obese from her pediatrician. The Chicago-area doctor was not only African American himself, but also served clients who were 90% working-class African Americans, Mrs. Obama said, and thus he was aware of the issue.



Presidential Collard Greens...
On his website, Parr enticed listeners with this blurb: "Michelle Obama also talks about a soul food dish that President Barack Obama enjoys." During his interview, Parr asked the First Lady if the President actually eats things grown in her Kitchen Garden, and then said he'd heard that Collard Greens are being grown on the South Lawn.

"We eat from our garden almost daily. We have a very healthy diet and generally we've got something green on the plate that comes from the garden," Mrs. Obama said. "So yes he eats from the garden whether he knows it or not...he's got collards out there."

"We've got a whole mess of greens out there."

Collard Greens have been growing in the Kitchen Garden since Mrs. Obama first planted it in 2009. Potatoes are the newest vegetable to be grown; Mrs. Obama recently planted five varieties. The First Lady also discussed how black churches are participating in Let's Move! through the subcomponent, Let's Move Faith and Communities. Mrs. Obama gave the keynote address for the second anniversary of her campaign at Northland, a Church Distributed, in Longwood, Florida. She spoke to more than 3,000 people after a gospel concert.

*Photo by Eddie Gehman Kohan/Obama Foodorama. Audio from the Russ Parr show.