The Obama Foundation

.@BarackObama's bracket is set. What do you think of his picks? Good luck to all of the athletes competing and the young men from @MBK_Alliance getting a peek into careers in sports.

In Shigeaki Mori, a Japanese atomic bomb survivor from Hiroshima, President Obama saw the best of humanity, even while reflecting on one of our darkest chapters. Mori died Sunday at age 88. Today, we honor his example, which President Obama spoke to in 2016 when he visited Hiroshima on the 71st anniversary of America dropping the atomic bomb on that city. Among the more than 140,000 killed in Hiroshima, Mori discovered 30 years later that there were 12 American POWs. He researched the men and wrote to their families, who didn’t yet know how their loved ones had died. President Obama was the first sitting U.S. president to visit Hiroshima, and while there, he reflected on Mori’s work — how it connected people through their shared humanity, regardless of their countless differences: “We’re not bound by genetic code to repeat the mistakes of the past. We can learn. We can choose. We can tell our children a different story –- one that describes a common humanity; one that makes war less likely and cruelty less easily accepted. We see these stories in the hibakusha –- the woman who forgave a pilot who flew the plane that dropped the atomic bomb, because she recognized that what she really hated was war itself; the man who sought out families of Americans killed here, because he believed their loss was equal to his own.” In telling the story of the universality of loss, Mori set an example for us all and we are all better for his contributions.

Audio: Kevin Cheng Audio: Lucretia Miller Colorist: Bossi Baker Teleprompter Service: McNulty & Nielsen Equipment: OTM Camera & Lighting Hair & Makeup: Zara Kaplan Walsh Colorist: Bossi Baker

Director: Peter Scalettar Editor: Eric Kutner DP: Corey Gegner DP: Alvin Octoman DP / Photographer: Michael Ojo Art Director: Dustin Dillard Camera Assist: Eusebio Cabrera Gaffer: Lawrence Le

Former President v. Future MVP. Who wins? All of us. Want to learn more about Home Court at the Obama Presidential Center? Visit obama.org today.

Introducing our new Did You Know? series … a fun way to share stories, history, and little-known facts from our team. Today’s fact: former President Obama’s Irish roots trace back to the village of Moneygall, Ireland 🇮🇪.

👀 Any guesses, fam?

Check out the reaction from Michael Smith, who led the famous redesign in 2013 and is a key advisor on the Center.

When William Navarrete Moreno, 2024-2026 Voyager Scholar, went to Coatequete, Guatemala and Baltimore, MD, for his Summer Voyage, he noticed that in different countries and with different populations, the root issues were the same. Inequity—the scarcity of food, the limits of land, and the long shadow of history—especially affects immigrant and underserved communities. That’s why he founded theCHANGEproject, a youth-led nonprofit dedicated to empowering young leaders to impact health equity from the ground up. “When we see the world, we can understand it. When we act with compassion and innovate, we can change it,” said William. Jumpstart your public service journey and apply to the Obama-Chesky Voyager Scholarship by March 17: obama.org/programs/voyag…

We are 100 days away from the Obama Presidential Center Grand Opening Ceremony, which will be livestreamed around the world! Our campus opens to the public on June 19, 2026.

I’m proud of the work that the @GirlsAlliance is doing to support 250 grassroots projects to empower more than 160,000 girls in 50 countries. This #InternationalWomensDay, I hope you’ll join us in helping change the lives of more girls around the world: gofundme.org/girls-opportun…

Tonight, we hosted an event at Home Court at the Obama Presidential Center to celebrate the meaning of this campus, and to thank our South Side neighbors for being part of this place from the start. The event coincided with the completion of installation of text on the facade of the Museum building — drawn from President Obama’s 2015 speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Selma-to-Montgomery marches on this very date. And yet, even as we look to the past for inspiration, the campus is not a monument to it. It is a living destination for people who refuse to accept the status quo. If you feel that way, this is your invitation to join us. Sign up to be the first to know about updates, events, and tickets at Obama.org.

Chicago will always be home. Barack and I can’t wait for you to visit the Obama Presidential Center this summer — grand opening celebrations will begin on June 18th, and it will open to the public on June 19th. See you soon! obama.org

Before becoming First Lady of the United States, before Harvard Law, before Princeton University — she had the South Side of Chicago. Here, Mrs. Obama learned what community means. Here, she grew up, fell in love, got married, and raised a family. Here, she developed the belief that the places that shape us deserve to be invested in. This June, the Obama Presidential Center opens in Jackson Park: a museum, a library, an athletic center, and almost 20 acres of green space — all for the South Side. We can’t wait to welcome you.

Today, Michelle and I are proud to announce that we will be hosting the dedication ceremony for the Obama Presidential Center on June 18th in Chicago, and welcoming the public on June 19th. We can’t wait for you to visit. Go to obama.org to learn more.

On this day, 61 years ago, hundreds gathered at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, marching for their most fundamental right in a democracy, the right to vote. The courage shown on that bridge forced the nation to confront the injustice so many had long endured. And at Bloody Sunday’s 50th anniversary, President Obama stood on that very bridge and reminded us that Selma was not just a moment in history. It was the proof that ordinary people can achieve extraordinary things. His words, now cast in concrete, wrap around the facade of the Obama Presidential Center Museum as a guiding light and an invitation. We can’t wait to let it inspire you. And today, we’re proud to tell the world that we open our doors to the public June 19.

This is not a monument to the past — it is a living destination for people who refuse to accept the status quo. If you feel that way, this is your invitation to join us. Sign up to be the first to know about updates, events, and tickets at Obama.org.

At the Museum, you will be moved by the powerful stories that the artifacts bring to life. Visitors can connect with our shared history, and be inspired to see themselves as agents of change.

Hope has a new home: On the South Side of Chicago, the Obama Presidential Center will be dedicated June 18, and the campus will open to the public June 19. It will be a place for all of us to come together to Bring Change Home. Sign up for tickets and updates at Obama.org.