Obama Presidential Center Opens in Chicago as Former President Rebukes 'Cynicism and Despair'
Barack and Michelle Obama dedicated the long-delayed center on Chicago's South Side before a crowd of former presidents and A-list performers, with the 44th president delivering a pointed defense of democracy without naming his successor.
Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama formally dedicated the Obama Presidential Center on Chicago's South Side on Wednesday, capping a decade of planning, litigation and construction with a star-studded ceremony that doubled as a defense of American democracy.
Speaking in Jackson Park, just miles from the neighborhoods where he began his career as a community organizer, Obama urged the country to resist "cynicism and despair" and reaffirmed his belief in "the shared values that make democracy possible," including "a belief in the peaceful transfer of power after the people have spoken in fair and free elections." He never mentioned President Donald Trump by name, but the contrast was unmistakable to the audience.
"So much of what I hold most dear I owe to the people of this city and the people of the surrounding neighborhoods," Obama said, calling the center "an expression of thanks" and insisting it "could not be any place else." Michelle Obama drew some of the loudest applause of the afternoon when she turned to her husband and recalled a promise from their early years together: "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."
The ceremony brought together every living former president except the sitting one. Former Presidents Joe Biden, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended, with Biden and former first lady Jill Biden seated beside the Obama family on stage. Former Vice President Kamala Harris and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi were also in the crowd, alongside Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg. President Trump did not attend.
The program leaned heavily on music, with performances from Bruce Springsteen, who played "Land of Hope and Dreams," along with Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Common, Jennifer Hudson, Christina Aguilera and U2's Bono and The Edge. Thousands more watched from a public viewing area on the nearby Midway Plaisance and via a global livestream.
The roughly $830 million campus, anchored by a 225-foot museum tower, has been in the works since shortly after Obama left office in 2017 and survived years of legal challenges from preservation groups opposed to building in the historic park. The museum and grounds open to the public on Thursday, June 19 — Juneteenth — with additional opening-weekend festivities planned through the following days. Obama Foundation officials say they expect the center to draw hundreds of thousands of visitors a year and to serve as a hub for civic training programs on the South Side.
Originally reported by CNN.