When the Obama Foundation rolls out its first major program, the organization won’t be welcoming diplomats, politically connected donors or celebrity elites.
Instead, the first Training Day on Saturday will concentrate on young people from throughout the city, organizers with the foundation said. The 150 young adults are to gather at Gary Comer Youth Center in the Greater Grand Crossing community where they will learn how to craft and tell their own stories, organize residents for a cause and take their message to a larger audience.
And the gathering got to learn some strategies of organizing from former President Barack Obama himself, when he made a surprise appearance at the event.
“There are a lot of issues I care about,” he told the gathering. “I care about criminal justice reform. I care about inequality. I care about educational opportunities. I care about climate change. I care about making sure that we are eliminating racism, and sexism and homophobia in our communities…
“I realized the best way for me to have an impact is to train the next generation of leaders so I am passing the baton,” he said.
Having the foundation’s first initiative focus on young people sends a message that even with its impressive connections and relationships with wealthy achievers, its first priority is residents in its own backyard, observers said.
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“If you look at the most vulnerable population when it comes to violence and lack of education, it’s the young people,” said Torrey Barrett, founder of the KLEO Community Family Life Center, a Washington Park organization that focuses on youth programs as a way to combat gun violence.
“The foundation clearly wants these young people to feel invested in,” he said. “Too many times young people come out of high school and don’t have the help to go to the next level. The foundation seems to be sharing their network, their name and confirming their commitment to the youth in this city. This is major.”
For months, officials with the foundation have said that the $300 million-plus Obama Presidential Center would be unlike other presidential libraries. Instead of housing Obama’s archives and artifacts, the campus is to function more like a community and education center that provides workshops and lectures — but most of all, inspiration, officials said.
Rolling out programs like the Training Day and an upcoming leadership summit set for the end of the month, before the center is even built, is one way this project is differentiating itself. It’s also a way to affirm former President Barack Obama’s mission to train grass-roots activists and groom the next generation of public servants.
The foundation is grabbing this age group right as the youths are eligible to vote and when they are positioned to decide how they want to spend the rest of their lives, said Margaret Simms, a fellow and researcher at the Urban Institute, a Washington-based think tank.
“This particular age, 18 to 21, is a time in most young people’s lives when they sense they are moving from being a child or teen toward being an adult,” she said. “Civic engagement should be an important part of that transition. It is a time when young people should think about what it means to create change and how to do it constructively.”
According to the foundation, nearly half the participants in the training session are from the South Side, 14 percent are from the West Side, about a quarter are from the North Side and 14 percent are from close suburbs.
About 30 of the participants don’t have a high school diploma, but foundation leaders still want to pour into them and learn from them and their life experiences, said Michael Strautmanis, the foundation’s vice president of civic engagement. All of the participants are under 25, but some of the youth leaders who will help guide the sessions are older.
At the training, the students will work with leaders to develop effective ways to dismantle discriminatory practices and address racism, sexism and prejudice. There will be an improv-style comedy show and activities that reinforce inclusivity and team-building.
There will also be a fair where the participants can learn about programs in the city where they can volunteer and get more training.
“The young people here got a big surprise … what he did with them is have a dialogue, he had a conversation. He listened to their stories and there’s nothing more empowering than that,” Strautmanis said.
Participants will be connected to the Obamas professionally going forward, he said.
Targeting young adults is crucial if the foundation wants to make a difference on the South and West sides, said the Rev. Michael Pfleger, of St. Sabina Catholic Church.
But if the foundation wants long-term success from its programs, it will have to do more than just offer leadership training, Pfleger said. Officials there will have to use their influence and connections to convince the powerful in the city to open up opportunities for minorities.
“I hope this move sends not just a message but a challenge,” he said. “Our city has all these corporate entities. If all of them did something, we could turn around this carnage and loss of potential. Beyond a one-day training, we have to find paid opportunities for them to use what they have learned. I’m not talking about janitorial and security guards — I’m talking opportunities that young people can support themselves and their families with.”
Karen Aguirre, 25, grew up in Back of the Yards, and for much of her life felt confined to that neighborhood, she said. But with hard work, grit and determination, she graduated from Loyola University and earned a master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
“The idea of being an advocate for a neighborhood sounds scary, but the work can start at any age,” she said. “For me, this is a very proud moment. I’ve been taught how to talk about social issues so it’s a great pleasure to give my knowledge and share what I’ve learned along the way.”
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