US First Lady laments culture of African Americans aspiring to be 'baller or rapper'

Michelle Obama urged graduates of Bowie State University to encourage more young African Americans to follow in their footsteps and focus on education.

On Friday, she asked the graduates at commencement ceremonies held at the nearby University of Maryland, College Park, campus, just north of Washington to become an example of excellence to the next generation.

The First Lady said that more than 150 years after the Emancipation Proclamation and more than 50 years after the end of "separate but equal," when it came to receiving an education, many young African Americans just weren't bothered.

Michelle asserted that instead of walking miles every day to school, the young African American were sitting on couches for hours, playing video games, watching TV and dreaming about "being a baller or a rapper," the Politico reported.

She cited the stats that one in three African American students dropped out of high school, and only one in five African Americans between the ages of 25 and 29 had a college degree.

Michelle added that priorities should change, as education is as important if not more as it was back when the Bowie State University was founded.