Friday is Juneteenth, the holiday marking when Union troops announced the emancipation of enslaved people at the end of the Civil War.

It’s also the grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center celebrating the nation’s first Black president.

The new campus on Chicago’s South Side is more than a traditional presidential library. It harkens back to former President Barack Obama’s political origins as a community organizer. It helps shape his legacy, too, even as he remains a powerful player in Democratic politics.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with NPR’s national political correspondent Don Gonyea, who was at the center’s opening.

This segment aired on June 19, 2026.