Marian Shields Robinson

Marian Shields was born in Chicago in 1937, the fourth of seven children—five girls, followed by two boys—born to Purnell Nathaniel Shields, a house painter, and his wife Rebecca Jumper, a licensed practical nurse.[1] Both parents had multi-racial ancestry.[2] Her mother's grandfather, Dolphus T. Shields (c. 1860–1950), was the direct descendant of slavery, with his mother enslaved and his white father the heir of the slavemaster; [2] he had moved from rural Georgia to Birmingham, Alabama, where he established his own carpentry and tool sharpening business.[3] His descendants would eventually move to Chicago during the Great Migration.[3]

Shields married Fraser Robinson III on October 27, 1960 in Chicago.[4] They had two children together, Craig Malcolm and Michelle LaVaughn, named after Fraser's mother. She worked as a secretary for mail-order retailer Spiegel, the University of Chicago, and a bank.[1]

While Michelle and Barack Obama campaigned for his candidacy as president in 2008, Robinson helped them by providing support to her granddaughters, Malia and Sasha Obama. During Barack Obama's presidency, Robinson was living in the White House in support of the First Family.[5][6]

• Swarns, Rachel L. (2012). American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White, and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-220465-3.

• "Marian Robinson", The New York Times
• "A Mother's Love: First Lady & Mom", Essence magazine
• "An In-Law Is Finding Washington to Her Liking ", The New York Times