by Shawntell Muhammad and Anisah Muhammad
Final Call Writers
CHICAGO—The Barack Obama Presidential Center officially opened its doors to the public on Juneteenth (June 19), one day after an invite-only dedication ceremony. The 19.3-acre campus includes a museum, a basketball court, several outdoor spaces and a library.
The June 18 dedication ceremony attracted thousands of people and was attended by former U.S. presidents, politicians and celebrities. It was a star-studded gathering. Dignitaries and guests included former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Joe Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Oprah Winfrey, Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Jennifer Hudson, Christina Aguilera, Common, LL Cool J and many others. All convened on the grounds of the newly constructed landmark.
“It was like medicine for me because the time seems so dark … ,” said legendary comedian Dave Chappelle in an interview with CNN about the June 18 ceremony. “Today was a celebration of culture and community,” he added.
The long-awaited center had been a decade in the making. It was announced in 2015, after the founding of the Obama Foundation in 2014. After years of planning and fundraising, and a year-long federal review of the use of public land, construction began in the Fall of 2021. The project’s cost is estimated at nearly $850 million. It was largely paid for through private donations to the Obama Foundation.
In social media posts, politicians, celebrities, activists and community organizers congratulated the Obamas on the center’s opening.
“Being at the Obama Center opening feels like the Super Bowl for community organizers. So many of us have dedicated our lives to fighting the good fight, block by block, school by school, neighborhood by neighborhood. President Obama inspired a generation of us to believe that hope was not just a feeling, it was a responsibility,” Jahmal Cole, founder and executive director of the Chicago-based nonprofit, “My Block, My Hood, My City,” said in a Facebook post.
“Today feels bigger than a building. It feels like a reminder that Chicago raised a leader who made the whole world believe again. For every organizer, mentor, teacher, coach, block club leader, nonprofit worker, and neighbor who never stopped believing in community, this day is for us too,” he added.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris commended the Obamas on their vision. “To know Barack and Michelle is to understand: They have always believed that leadership is about leaving something behind that empowers others. Today’s opening of the Obama Presidential Center reflects that vision. It will continue to invest in future generations and encourage people to see themselves as part of something bigger,” she said.
Most outdoor areas of the campus, located in Chicago’s South Side, are free and open to the public daily, while the museum requires paid admission.
“President Obama has always understood that progress is built from the ground up, in neighborhoods and communities. This center, rooted on Chicago’s South Side, reflects that,” Martin Luther King III, eldest son of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, said in a Facebook post.
A son of Africa and America
Barack Hussein Obama made history on January 20, 2009, when he was inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States, becoming the first Black president of the U.S., and he served a second term after being re-elected on November 6, 2012. His father was a Black man from Kenya, and his mother was a White woman from Kansas.
Born and raised in Hawaii, he spent part of his childhood in Indonesia and found his political grounding in Chicago as a community organizer in his 20s. He attended Harvard University and graduated magna cum laude with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) in 1991. Before entering politics, he spent over a decade teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School. From 1997 to 2004, he was an Illinois State Senator, and he served in the U.S. Senate from 2005 to 2008 before running for president.
His wife, former First Lady Michelle Obama, is a South Side native. The couple married on October 3, 1992, and welcomed two daughters, Malia and Natasha (Sasha). The Obamas have a rich history in the South Side.
Mrs. Obama presented a heartfelt speech to her husband, leaving many, including Mr. Obama, wiping away tears. “Barack, you gotta look at me. I love that. You told me all those years ago that you couldn’t promise me the world, but you could promise me an interesting life. And of course, you outdid yourself and managed to give me both. I know it hasn’t always been easy, but there hasn’t been a single second through this experience that standing by your side hasn’t left me in awe. Eight years in The Crucible and not once did you melt from the heat. Not once did you let it harden you. Instead, you used it to reveal your truest essence, your stubborn optimism and unflinching courage, your dazzling brilliance and unpretentious decency, your ferocious work ethic and absolutely unshakable moral fiber,” she said.
“The Obama Presidential Center was created as a beacon of hope, a monument to our unshakable values. The ones my husband has exemplified his entire life: equality, empathy, honesty, inclusion, and fairness. Especially during these anxious and divisive times, it is so important that we remember that those values are not unique to my husband,” Mrs. Obama said.
During his remarks, Mr. Obama also showered love to his family. “To Michelle. …. All right. She did me wrong. She wouldn’t let me see her speech. She knew she was going to mess me up. And she did it anyway. But she’s always made me better. And I could not be more grateful.
“And … to Sasha and Malia, what can I say? You mean everything to me,” he said.
Mr. Obama also shared some of his and his wife’s vision for the center. “We wanted it to be a vibrant, living celebration of community where we can learn together and share the joys of art and music and sport and play. Because it’s in those moments that we’re reminded of our common humanity and strengthen the bonds of trust that not only make our lives richer, but make our democracy stronger. And we also wanted this center to be a celebration of the extraordinary public servants, many of whom are here today, that made this journey possible,” said Mr. Obama.
Now, the couple is on a mission to give back to their community. The campus is designed to be a space for learning, cultural programming and community amenities. The Obama Foundation chose Juneteenth to open the Obama Presidential Center as a powerful symbol of the ongoing struggle for equality, civil rights, and community empowerment.
“What struck me most is that this isn’t simply a presidential library. Built on the South Side of Chicago, where Barack and Michelle Obama’s story is so deeply rooted, it feels like a living, breathing interactive cultural gathering place, a space where people can learn, participate, advocate, bring their children, enjoy art, share a meal, have conversations, and be inspired to SERVE,” actress and activist Holly Robinson Peete said in a Facebook post.
“Walking through it all, I kept thinking about HOPE … not as a slogan, but as a practice. Service. Community. Empathy. Integrity. So many themes it feels we’ve lost sight of,” she added. “And for this opening to take place on #Juneteenth added another layer of meaning. A day that commemorates freedom, resilience, and unfinished work felt like the perfect moment to celebrate a place dedicated to civic engagement and the promise of what is possible.”
Excitement, concerns and the future
The center has not been without a few concerns. In its early days of construction in 2021 and 2022, The Final Call reported on community concerns about gentrification and displacement. Black South Side residents expressed concerns about possible rising rents and increasing property taxes.
All of those concerns have not been dispelled. A recent University of Chicago research paper examined how “large-scale investments” in Chicago lead to an increase in land values that “ultimately intensify the rent burdens and displacement pressures for low-income, predominantly Black residents.” It found that after the announcement of the Obama Presidential Center, “the median sale price of single-family homes” in Woodlawn “jumped from $72,500 in 2016 to $330,000 in 2025.” The center is situated in the historic Jackson Park, at the intersection of the Woodlawn, Hyde Park, and South Shore neighborhoods, and is specifically located at 6001 S. Stony Island Avenue in the Woodlawn community.
In several news outlets, South Side residents expressed both excitement at the center’s opening and their lingering concerns about displacement. However, the Obama Foundation has vowed to support initiatives related to job opportunities, workforce development and affordable housing.
Here are some of the campus offerings:
· Museum – The four-floor museum includes a full-size replica of President Obama’s oval office and a “Sky Room” offering panoramic views.
· The Forum – A community and civic space that includes an atrium, auditorium, “Democracy in Action” lab, media suite, restaurant and cafe
· Home Court – A 60,000-square-foot athletic and events space
· Outdoor spaces – John Lewis Plaza, Eleanor Roosevelt Fruit and Vegetable Garden, a playground, a 58,000-square-foot lawn, gardens, walking trails, courtyards and an apiary with one beehive
· Chicago Public Library, Obama Presidential Center Branch
· Art – More than 28 art installations by 30 artists
The fruit and vegetable garden was designed by Mrs. Obama. The campus also includes a recording studio, a picnic area and a new branch of the Chicago Public Library. The center is not a presidential library and does not include a physical archive or traditional library for presidential papers. Mr. Obama’s archives, which are mostly digital, are being stored in Washington, D.C.
The Obama Foundation and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) agreed to digitize his presidential records rather than build a massive physical repository
During its sold-out opening weekend, June 19-21, the campus featured 15-minute tour experiences, performances on the plaza, interactive and hands-on art workshops, a garden program, appearances by the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Stars FC, and Chicago White Sox, and a Sunday Father’s Day Walk.
A diamond on the South Side
Della Hill, who traveled from Detroit, stated, “The Obamas have been such an inspiration for me coming of age; they are great global citizens. I found that it is really important to be amongst the community and celebrate Juneteenth at the Obama Presidential Center.”
Jackie Brooks, who traveled by charter bus from Galveston, Texas, stated, “We are here to support normalcy in the United States, and I could not miss this grand opening. Michelle Obama’s speech was heartwarming, and everyone should come visit this center. I am so happy to be here.”
Nahla Muhammad is a Chicago entrepreneur and owner of Let’s Eat To Live restaurant, located less than 10 minutes from the Obama Presidential Center. Ms. Muhammad attended the dedication ceremony on June 18. “The center and the ceremony were historical as well as eventful. There were many great performances, and the beautiful part was Michelle Obama’s speech about her husband. This center will bring business to the entire corridor of this area, which is a great benefit,” she said.
Longtime Chicago resident and activist La’Keisha Gray-Sewell shared her thoughts on social media about attending the grand opening reception of the Obama Presidential Center. “Witnessing the labor and construction, the community tension and celebration that has been brewing for years to now finally standing in the building and on the campus is to reconcile everything Black in America is … The Souls of Black Folk. One undeniable truth … Black folk will gift the world timeless treasures and creative brilliance; all from our pain. Diamonds,” she posted.
“And that is what the Obama Presidential Center signifies. A diamond pressed out of the experience of the First Black family to lead the world as the First Family of America, because a Black man became the Chief Executive Officer, the President of the United States of America.
“All that power, excellence, fortitude, perseverance, agility, and compassion that was planted, nurtured, cultivated on the South Side of Chicago stands for generations to experience. And all the inspiration and hope that comes with it. It’s an undeniable truth. A feeling that won’t be suppressed. I witnessed history. I’m standing in history. Black Chicago, WE ARE MAKING HISTORY everyday. This is our moment. Nothing but ourselves can defeat us.”
For more information, visit www.obama.org.
Final Call staff contributed to this report.
