Lines and smiles as the Obama's welcome the public to presidential museum on Juneteenth

Darcel Rockett, Chicago Tribune on Jun 19, 2026

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CHICAGO — The lines were many, the smiles countless and the pride after stepping foot on the campus of the Obama Presidential Center was priceless.

The word magnificent was uttered more than once.

Walkers and wheelchairs mingled with strollers and wagons where youth were carted around.

The feeling of community, brotherhood, and sisterhood was evident as folks asked passersby to take their photo on opening day, which falls on Juneteenth, a federal holiday commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans.

The Jackson Park-based museum opened to the public Friday, capping off more than a decade of anticipation and controversy, as the campus, which includes a forum building, parkland, and a Chicago Public Library branch, reworked one of the city’s most historic parks and a major thoroughfare.

But on Friday morning, it was all glee and excitement as visitors from across the country streamed toward the campus.

The Hoover family stepped forth from their SUV with their two children. The trek wasn’t long for the Bronzeville residents, but Chad Hoover’s sister, Amanda Lester, traveled from Bolingbrook with three of her four children to be a part of history.

“Everybody always says $800M is the largest investment in the Black community in the United States – no one has ever invested that much money into a community before and to see something that makes us feel like we are worth it–almost a billion dollars…we appreciate it,” Hoover said. “We’re going to cherish this because with the way things are going, we may never get this again.”

Inside the presidential center, the Obamas greeted the first 100 visitors, according to a pool report.

Awed guests shook hands with former president and Michelle Obama against the backdrop of a colorful, 38-foot-tall painting depicting a map of Chicago stretching to the ceiling, inspired by Carl Sandburg’s 1914 poem about the city: “stormy, husky, brawling, City of the Big Shoulders.”

The Obamas – Barack in a blue button-down shirt and dark-colored slacks, Michelle wearing a brown, sleeveless top and tan pants — greeted the press pool as they walked in the room at 10:48 am Chicago time. “Hey, people! Good morning, good to see you,” he said.

Barack Obama mimicked a drum roll as the first guests arrived.

Museum-goers trickled into the room, chatting, curious, and vibrating with energy, faces transforming with shock and delight as they spotted the Obamas waiting to welcome them.

“Oh my gosh,” said a woman with two young kids. They waited in a short line to meet the Obamas.

“We got our future presidents here,” Obama said to the family.

Outside, Jeanette Summerville, drove from Hunstville, Ala. to step foot in the Forum, an all-purpose space on the campus, for a concert in the afternoon. “This is a landmark to remember what we had and to give us hope in the future,” she said.

—The Tribune’s A.D. Quig contributed.

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