This Just In — Today kicks off a glorious weekend in the City of Chicago and throughout the country. With the official opening of the Obama Presidential Center on Juneteenth weekend, we will see a spectacular American celebration of a dream fulfilled.
We all know that there’s a bitter, demented toddler who can’t stand this idea and will throw all kinds of mud, vulgarity and distraction toward the television cameras that follow him everywhere, but the audacity of the Obama Center will overtake that nonsense like a mother of six in the grocery store. Strictly business. Take a seat. Hush up.
Barack Obama elected to build his presidential center and museum (technically not a National Archive Presidential Library) on the South Side of Chicago, very near the neighborhood where Michelle Robinson Obama grew up. The former First Lady described this moving decision as partly a tribute to her mother, Marion Robinson, and a tremendous gift to the community where Michelle and Craig Robinson grew up.
The campus of the Obama center sits on 19.3 acres of land that was vacant and neglected for most of the Robinsons’ time in Chicago. It was an empty and dangerous place — not a place for young children to feel safe and welcome. Not a dreamscape.
As he has done in so many ways, before, during and after his presidency, Barack Obama changed all that. One of the most stunning and moving things about the Obama Center is the degree to which it lifts up and reminds all of us of the other leaders who helped cement his legacy.
There are beautiful admission-free public spaces like the John Lewis Plaza, the Eleanor Roosevelt Fruit and Vegetable Garden, the Ann Dunham Water Terrace. The Nancy Pelosi Garden Pavillion pays tribute to the first female House Speaker whose strong leadership delivered the votes to enact Obama’s Affordable Care Act.
Across this holiday weekend, there will be a spectacular, star-studded concert that many of us will be pointing to as the marking of our national birthday. In 1976 after my high school graduation, we all watched the parade of tall ships coming into New York with great national pride, marking the nation’s bicentennial. Likewise, many of us will watch the Juneteenth weekend celebration in Chicago and check the box that we’ve marked our 250th birthday.
I often see clips of the Obamas on social media with comments about how much we miss the sheer dignity and common decency that they exuded. We miss that coming from the White House. Fair enough, but they continue to work in community service, lifting up others and supporting organizations that are doing important work. I commend to all the IMO (In My Opinion) podcast hosted by Craig Robinson and Michelle Obama.
Americans have some significant remorse about the outcome of the 2024 presidential election and that’s a burden that we must bear as citizens. The Obamas are setting a platinum standard of how to do that.
Face it. Name it. Get on with making tomorrow better. Reach out to your community. Advocate for progress. Lift up others. Plant a garden. Sing a song. Own your joy. Set boundaries to block out ugliness.
Be a citizen. Register to vote and every time your government needs your opinion, get out and vote. Happy Juneteenth, Y’all.
Jean Bolduc is a freelance writer and is the author of “African Americans of Durham & Orange Counties: An Oral History” (History Press, 2016) and has served on Orange County’s Human Relations Commission, The Alliance of AIDS Services-Carolina, the Orange County Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, and the Orange County Schools’ Equity Task Force. She was a featured columnist and reporter for the Chapel Hill Herald and the News & Observer.
Readers can reach Jean via email – [email protected] and via Twitter @JeanBolduc
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
This Just In: An American Celebration Chapelboro.com.
Hence then, the article about this just in an american celebration was published today ( ) and is available on chapelboro ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( This Just In: An American Celebration )
Also on site :
- Sumsub Becomes First Verification Platform to Enable AI Agents to Build Compliance Setup
- F.F. Thompson Hospital in Canandaigua dealing with active threat
- Tracking a cool Thursday, mild holiday weekend