Obama Re-Emerges Into Public Sphere, Chews Over 'Daunting' Civic Issues

By Stephen Gossett in News on Apr 24, 2017 6:04PM

"So, uh, whats been going on while I've been gone?"

That cheeky, knowing question—delivered on Monday at the top of Barack Obama's first public appearance since exiting the White House—was about as close as the former president came to directly addressing the Trumpian political landscape.

Nevertheless, Obama chewed over many of the underlying issues that color and frame that very landscape when he made a short homecoming address and led a panel of six young people in a conversation about civic engagement, at the University of Chicago.

"I spend a lot time thinking, What is the most important thing I can do for my next job?" framing his post-presidential career as Facilitator-of-Youthful-Engagement-in-Chief. "What I’m convinced of is that although there are all kinds of issues that I care about, and all kind of issues that I intend to work on, the most important single thing I can do is to help in any way I can prepare the next generation of leadership to take up the baton and take their own crack at changing the world.”

To lead off the roughly hourlong event, Obama recounted his formative time as a community organizer on Chicago's South Side, citing the "economic devastations and racial turmoil" that many communities, such as Roseland and Altgeld Gardens, faced at that time. And he sought to link that past to the issues of today, touching on gerrymandering, immigration, climate change, special interests, changes in the media, and, briefly, violence in Chicago.

In many ways, it was pure and vintage Obama, as he and panelists lamented a lack of civility in present-day politics and the echo-chamber effect of self-isolation yet still sounded notes of optimism.

"One thing I'm absolutely convinced of is, yes, we confront a whole range of challenges. They're serious, they're daunting, but they're not insoluble," he said.

Much of the public is "further and further reinforcing their own realities in neglect to a common reality," he said.

Obama led a panel of six young speakers who interacted with the former president on the range of topics. He was joined by Tiffany Brown Ph.D, a graduate of Chicago State University and Kenwood Academy High School; Ramuel Figueroa, an undergraduate at Roosevelt University; Max M. Freedman, an undergraduate at the University of Chicago; Kelsey McClear, an undergraduate at Loyola University Chicago; Harish Patel, a graduate of University of Illinois at Chicago; and Ayanna Watkins a senior at Kenwood Academy High School.

"The youth feel like they don’t have a voice," Watkins, also a young entrepreneur, said, when asked by Obama what prevents people from getting involved.

Freedman, a Republican, said “it depends on the setting" as to whether or not he's forthcoming about his political ideologies. "There is a significant empathy gap, not just here, but everywhere… We’ve cloistered ourselves."

In vintage motivational form, Obama stressed the importance of everyday engagement. "Sometimes people think if you're not running for office, or it's not election day..." then civic responsibility dips. "Statistics show that people are less likely to be involved in community organizations than they used to be." Community pillars such as Rotary clubs and unions no longer carry the weight they once did, he lamented.

Despite the decidedly academic tone, of-the-moment politics couldn't help but percolate under the surface. Decades ago, there were "different opinions, but there was a common baseline of facts," Obama said, referencing, although not explicitly identifying, the fake-news media reality.

When the conversation turned toward immigration near the end, Obama granted some validity to those who "feel frustrated if they perceive people are cutting the line," but he said that the United States has often benefited from fluidity in its immigration policy. "It's not like everybody at Ellis Island had their papers straight," he said.

Obama also expressed some anxiety over the long tail of our digital histories as related to public life. “If you had pictures of everything I had done when I was in high school, I probably wouldn't have been president," he said.

Obama's speech on Monday represents the first step in what looks like a deeper dive into the public spotlight in the coming weeks. He'll received an award in Boston on May 7, and he's scheduled to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on May 25.

You can watch the full video of Obama's speech and discussion, above.