The Obama Presidential Center Announces “You Are America” Celebratory Summer Series to Honor America’s 250th Anniversary
The series will kick off with a free Independence Day celebration “The People’s Fourth,” featuring live music, self-guided tours, and family-friendly activities across the campus
June 29, 2026 at 7:00 AM CDT
CHICAGO — This July Fourth, the Obama Presidential Center will launch a new series of free, family-friendly events and activities called “You Are America.” This eight-week series honors the inclusive spirit of America and aims to welcome neighbors across Chicago and the world to the Center’s campus to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary.
“The Obama Presidential Center is a permanent home for hope and we will celebrate this historic milestone by shining the light on those who will continue to perfect our nation,” said Valerie Jarrett, CEO of The Obama Foundation. “Whether you come from down the block, across the city, or around the world, our new series will inspire visitors to shape a better future for all.”
The “You are America” series will kick off with a free July Fourth celebration called “The People’s Fourth,” featuring live music with Melody Angel, Mucca Pazza and DJ Hot Rod, self-guided tours, and family-friendly activities across the campus.
The campus-wide “You Are America” series will run through August with special events and performances to celebrate the 250 years of American progress and get inspired for a more inclusive and hopeful future. This celebratory series honoring the 250th Anniversary of America is made possible through the generous support of GCM Grosvenor.
As Chicago’s newest cultural destination, the Obama Presidential Center will welcome visitors and community members to the South Side for a summer series of talks, films, and community events marking this historic milestone. These summer programs are made possible through the generous support of Northwestern Medicine—the Center’s Founding Partner of Health and Wellness—and the Chicago Community Trust. Forum Talks at the Center are made possible through the generous support of the John & Jacolyn Bucksbaum Family Foundation.
The summer series will include various events, performances, activations and more, including:
The inaugural Art in Action talk on July 7 in the Elie Wiesel Auditorium, featuring world-renowned, Obama Presidential Center commissioned artist Mark Bradford, who joins Dr. Louise Bernard, Founding Director of the Obama Presidential Center Museum, to discuss his art practice, his commissioned artwork on campus, and his materially-driven approach to abstraction. This ticketed event is sold out, but visitors are encouraged to keep an eye on the Center’s event calendar for future Artist Activations.
Live sets on the John Lewis Plaza by legendary DJs, DJ Lady D and Jesse De La Pena, to celebrate Chicago House Music on July 10.
On July 17, the Center will host a symposium in the Forum Building and the Elie Wiesel Auditorium, co-curated with Eric Williams as part of The Silver Room’s Sound System Block Party Weekend. The symposium at the Center will focus on America through the lens of community, art, and culture. The events are designed to engage a broad audience from Chicago, the Midwest, and across the country—uniting community members, cultural practitioners, and scholars in a dialogue that connects civic involvement with history and the arts. Subsequent festival activities will be held at various other Chicago locations. Talent and tickets will be announced soon.
Garden Gatherings will be hosted in the Eleanor Roosevelt Fruit and Vegetable Garden every other week from July 12 to September 20, in partnership with Urban Growers Collective. These free, open-house style gatherings feature live music from local DJs, hands-on gardening activities in the garden classroom, and a culinary outpost featuring seasonal bites from BAMJoy, the Center’s restaurant and catering partner.
For its first Movies on the Plaza experience on July 21, the Center will feature a sing-along screening of Hamilton, the filmed Broadway production that reimagines the founding era through a contemporary lens blending hip-hop, R&B, and traditional musical theater to tell the story of America’s revolutionary beginnings. The second movie, Encanto, will be screened on August 11.
A special performance on July 27 by the Chicago Philharmonic as it brings Side by Side, its flagship community program, to the John Lewis Plaza. This outdoor tradition brings together community musicians with those of the Chicago Philharmonic for an exciting summer-evening concert led by Artistic Director Scott Speck. The program honors trailblazing artists including Florence Price, John Williams, Carlos Simon, and William Grant Still— with a performance by musicians of all ages that is rooted in collaboration, connection, and the spirit of “We.”
On August 4, community members and visitors are invited to join a karaoke celebration in honor of President Obama’s birthday on the John Lewis Plaza, singing classics from soul, R&B, and contemporary music.
A celebration of Chicago’s diverse food culture on August 22 with a panel, in the Elie Wiesel Auditorium, to explore how culinary arts narrate the rich and complex story of American history and shape identity, place and community. The panel will feature American chefs Matthew Raiford, Maya-Camille Broussard, Cliff Rome, and award-winning author Adrian Miller. After the talk, guests can try dishes prepared by chefs from across Chicago, in partnership with Chicago Chefs Cook.
This new series celebrating America’s 250th anniversary will engage visitors to celebrate the power of diverse voices and collective action, explore the past to inform the future, and highlight the impact of Chicago and its South Side communities in shaping movements for change while building a better future.
Around the country, Obama Leaders USA Alumni will continue to further these goals to inspire, empower and connect people to change their world, through the launch of “Kitchen Table Dialogues.” This will feature a series of intimate, guided conversations in local communities, on strengthening trust for the next 250 years of democracy.
The phrase “You Are America” also refers to the words emblazoned on the exterior of the Museum building at the Presidential Center, a quote about the power and promise of America that draws a meaningful line between the history that made the Obamas’ story possible, the narrative in the Museum, and the ongoing work of The Obama Foundation.
About The Obama Foundation
The Obama Foundation is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world. That mission begins on the South Side of Chicago, where the Foundation is building the Obama Presidential Center. But that approach extends to all our work, whether it’s holding leadership training sessions in communities throughout the U.S., bringing local leaders together in countries around the world, working to support the global education of girls, or ensuring young men of color have pathways to opportunity. From every corner of the globe, our program participants are working together to address some of the biggest challenges of our time—from renewing our democratic institutions, protecting LGBTQ+ rights, fighting climate change, and so much more.
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Contact: Emily Bittner, press@obama.org