I don’t think so! For months now as critics and admirers alike
have pointed to the winding down of President Obama’s tenure as our 44th
President, a quiet but intense battle has raged. Usually beneath the surface, or out of the
eyesight of the seemingly ever present eye in the sky of the news media, The
University of Hawaii, Columbia University, The University of Illinois at
Chicago, and the University of Chicago have vied for the prestigious
opportunity to be name home for the Barack Obama Presidential Library. Without further adieu, congratulations to the
University of Chicago, located on the City’s well-known, and often
controversial South Side.
Let’s take a quick look at the contenders to
get an idea why they were in the race in the first place:
The University of Hawaii – President Obama,
despite the insistence of Birthers such as Donald Trump, was born in
Hawaii. Pretty much automatically, The
Aloha State and its Flagship University was a contender. Frankly, however, the University of Nairobi
and/or the University of Indonesia (for the sake of those zany Birthers) stood
about the same chance as the University of Hawaii of winning the Library. Hawaii is the most isolated population center
on the planet. It is 2,390 miles from
California, 3,850 miles from Japan, 4,900 miles from China, and 5,280 miles
from the Philippines. In the fast paced politics
of Negotiation 101, there were probably many reasons why the U of H was not
going to be the ultimate home of the Obama Library, but almost certainly, the
distance factor alone was sufficient to eliminate the Hawaiian Islands from
serious consideration. It was nice of
them to try, but it was never going to happen.
Columbia University – President Obama earned
his undergraduate degree, a Bachelors of Arts in political
science with a specialty in international
relations from Columbia, after spending his first two years
of college studying at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Columbia, an
Ivy League research university, located in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is in many ways the antithesis of the
University of Hawaii. Located in
America’s largest population center, is situated in the center of the BosWash
megalopolis. Columbia is many things,
but located in an isolated region is not one of them. Yet, I do not believe Columbia was serious
player in this game. Barack Obama had
not begun to make his mark during his Columbia era.
The University of Illinois at Chicago – The UIC
has a lot to offer. First, it is in
President Obama’s adopted hometown.
Although there has been a number of feints and deflections about where
President Obama will live after his presidency, and it’s yet to be
determined…or at least announced, what we do know, is Chi-Town has served as
the launching point for almost everything related to his political career, from
his introduction to community organizing to his victory speech in Grant Park
after his election in 2008. The school
operates the largest medical school in the United States, and educates more of
Illinois’ physicians, dentists, pharmacists, physical therapists, nurses, and
other health care professionals than any other institution. Yet, I am reminded of an inside joke a friend
of mine and I share. Cutting straight to
the chase, UIC is a State School. All
the Presidents Post Secondary education pursuits to date have occurred at private
institutions, Occidental, Columbia, and Harvard, where he studied, and the
University of Chicago, where he served as a Lecturer from 1992-1996, and a
Senior Lecturer from 1996-2004, when he was elected to the U.S. Senate. Senior Lecturers are considered professors;
just not full-time or tenure-track. Mr.
Obama was invited several times to join the faculty in a tenure-track position,
but declined.
It’s worth noting that Harvard was not among
the list of schools vying for the Obama Presidential Library. A little research reveals that the Kennedy
Library, located near the University of Massachusetts was initially slated for Harvard,
President Kennedy’s alma mater. The
shorthand version of what happened is it took the project so long to unfold,
that what began as a popular idea devolved into one opposed by the community
around the University, due to the anticipated crowds and commercialization of
the area. There is not much reason to
think attitudes have shifted in any fundamental way after the ensuing decades.
The University of Chicago – As President Obama
put it in his own words in a video to the Obama Foundation yesterday:
"All the strands of my life came
together and I really became a man when I moved to Chicago,"
That pretty much says it all. Any other location would have been an upset
selection. He represented the South Side
of Chicago in his Illinois Senate Seat, and of course went on to represent the
State in the U.S. Senate. Ultimately,
the Foundation decided on Chicago, and Mr. and Mrs. Obama signed off on the
call. The president also said in the
video:
"With a
library and a foundation on the South Side of Chicago, not only will we be able
to encourage and effect change locally but what we can also do is attract the
world to Chicago."
Finally, President Obama observed that
Chicago is the nexus that connects the many elements of his life when he said
the city of Chicago is that place where:
“All the strands
of my life came together.
The people there, the community, the lessons that I learned – they’re all based right in this few square miles where we’ll now be able to give something back and bring the world back home after this incredible journey.”
The people there, the community, the lessons that I learned – they’re all based right in this few square miles where we’ll now be able to give something back and bring the world back home after this incredible journey.”
The City is where he began his career,
met his wife, Michelle, and where his children were born. Chicago’s South Side: Could There Ever Have Been Any Other Choice? Really, no!
I’m done; holla back!
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