Obama’s legacy project offers little hope for Chicago’s South Side residents |
Opinion
Obama’s legacy project offers little hope for Chicago’s South Side residents
Rents climbing, property values doubling and longtime residents fearing they'll be pushed out of their homes
By Corey Brooks Fox News
Published June 16, 2026 7:00am EDT
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The Obama Presidential Center will open soon to the public in Jackson Park, Illinois, an $850 million gleaming monument to one man’s legacy. Yet for the families of Woodlawn, South Shore and the rest of Chicago’s South Side, there are many unhappy faces and concerns. Some of us wonder how this will better our neighborhood. Ever since the monument was announced, the local residents have dealt with unfulfilled promises, rising rents, displacement fears and continued violence. We have a right to be skeptical. After all, it’s common sense.
For many of us, the varnish that Barack Obama once had as the first Black president of the United States has worn off. Many of us remember how Obama first came to these streets as a community organizer. What lasting impact did he leave? Very little. He served as an Illinois state senator. What lasting transformation did he deliver for the South Side? Not much. He became president of the United States. What measurable turnaround did his policies bring to the communities he once organized? Not much at all.
Crime stayed high, poverty persisted, families continued to........