{"id":106980,"date":"2026-06-26T16:23:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T21:23:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=106980"},"modified":"2026-06-30T19:17:45","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T00:17:45","slug":"barack-obamas-presidential-center-is-officially-open-to-the-public","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/barack-obamas-presidential-center-is-officially-open-to-the-public\/","title":{"rendered":"WATCH: Barack Obama\u2019s presidential center is officially open to the public"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">By Brock Morgan<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Medill Reports<\/span><\/i><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Thousands of visitors gathered in\u00a0Chicago\u00a0on Juneteenth\u00a0to celebrate the grand opening of\u00a0former President Barack Obama\u2019s presidential library campus, marking the culmination of years of planning and creating a new cultural and educational destination on\u00a0the city\u2019s South Side.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The opening ceremony drew supporters,\u00a0families\u00a0and community members from across the region who came to explore the multi-acre campus. Alongside museum exhibits, attendees enjoyed cultural performances, arts activities, a\u00a0playground\u00a0and public gathering spaces. Staff members said the campus is designed to unify while serving as a hub for education, reflection\u00a0and community engagement.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:240,&quot;335559739&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Barack Obama\u2019s presidential center is officially open to the public\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1204970588?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">TRANSCRIPT:<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">BROCK MORGAN:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0After months of planning, anticipation<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and a\u00a0star-studded\u00a0opening ceremony,\u00a0Barack Obama&#8217;s $850 million presidential library\u00a0is officially ready for the public.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">YOUNTS WATERS:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">I&#8217;ve\u00a0always been a fan of Barack Obama,\u00a0I\u00a0voted for him twice, and I just\u00a0couldn&#8217;t\u00a0miss this event.\u00a0I had to be here.\u00a0It&#8217;s\u00a0already been\u00a0worth it. Just being right here in front of this building,\u00a0I&#8217;ve\u00a0already gotten everything that I want.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0The campus was vibrant and inclusive, displaying music and dance from various cultures<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0in addition to arts and crafts for all ages.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">CHRISTEN CARTER:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">This\u00a0is<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0like<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0one of the most important things I feel like has happened in Chicago in\u00a0a very long\u00a0time. We are making buttons on the spot.\u00a0We&#8217;re\u00a0actually\u2013\u00a0people\u00a0can draw their own buttons.\u00a0They can see themselves in the logo\u00a0and,\u00a0like,\u00a0really\u00a0personalize something that\u2013\u00a0it&#8217;s\u00a0them.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">One staff member says\u00a0the almost\u00a020-acre campus can be described in three words.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">GENORA STONE:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Hope, love<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and\u00a0kindness,\u00a0\u2018cause\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0an experience to have. And when you walk in, you feel it. And when you leave out, I expect you to take\u00a0the\u00a0hope, love\u00a0and kindness and spread it out amongst the communities, wherever\u00a0they&#8217;re\u00a0from.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The grand opening also served as a teaching opportunity for parents.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MELONEE BURGESS:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">I felt like it was important to bring her today<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0because this morning I was talking to her about what Juneteenth is and what it means, and she&#8217;s only 4 years old, so, you know, just trying to make it on a level that she understood. And so, it was very\u00a0important\u00a0we\u00a0come\u00a0out today.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Few were able to access the\u00a0sold-out\u00a0museum section of campus, but among those that were, some found it inspiring.<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">RITA TYSON:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Talking about hope and the change and all of everything that still exists to this day because even though it may seem bleak, it may be cloudy or it may seem like\u00a0it&#8217;s\u00a0not hope, that hope is still\u00a0ever\u00a0present.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Nonticketed\u00a0sections of the campus include a restaurant, picnic\u00a0space\u00a0and playground.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">BURGESS:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0It looks\u00a0beautiful. This playground is awesome.\u00a0My daughter\u00a0actually said, &#8220;This is the best playground I&#8217;ve ever seen,&#8221;\u00a0when we were walking up, so\u00a0we&#8217;re\u00a0just excited to be able to experience what we can experience today.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">MORGAN:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0I&#8217;m\u00a0Brock Morgan\u00a0in\u00a0Chicago, Medill Reports.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Brock Morgan is a sports media specialization graduate student at Medill.<\/span><\/i><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Brock Morgan\u00a0 Medill Reports\u00a0 Thousands of visitors gathered in\u00a0Chicago\u00a0on Juneteenth\u00a0to celebrate the grand opening of\u00a0former President Barack Obama\u2019s presidential library campus, marking the culmination of years of planning and creating a new cultural and educational destination on\u00a0the city\u2019s South Side.\u00a0 The opening ceremony drew supporters,\u00a0families\u00a0and community members from across the region who came to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1038,"featured_media":106985,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194,5543,5569],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-culture","category-msj26","category-summer-2026"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - 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