A look at the Chicago crucible that helped form Barack Obama
Obama’s Chicago
Obama’s Chicago
The Hyde Park area on Chicago’s south side was a great place to live according to Billups. “All along
Chicago’s lakefront is public park from the farthest north to the farthest south,” Billips said. “The University of
Chicago is in Hyde Park. And it was the hip place to be. You’d run into places where they were showing on
television just this weekend about Hyde Park like Ribs N Bibs, which is a barbeque place that is still there and
operating probably at a pretty profitable level. There were several other restaurants and movie theaters that
were in the neighborhood. These are the areas that attracted the hippest of people. That’s why I am from
around there. [laugh] It was entertaining. As you got older, you could take advantage of the night life and the
art life was always there. The music, the performances and the Oscar Brown Revue and The Point were there.
The Point is on the lakefront where guys would gather just to read poetry and rap as we used to call it. It doesn’t
mean the musical rap of today, but to have these conversations about the political and social impact of what
was going on to the beat of the bongos. It was a great gathering place for young people, Black and White, in
the city. That’s where Barack settled as a place to live.”
While Taylor agreed with Billups about the positive features of Hyde Park, Taylor also remembered some of
the negative things that had occurred there as well. It was not a place where Barack Obama could necessarily
forget the history of Africans in America. “I believe that the city was instrumental in fanning the flames of racial
prejudice, which actually ensued into what was known as White flight,” Taylor observed. “There
Chicago’s lakefront is public park from the farthest north to the farthest south,” Billips said. “The University of
Chicago is in Hyde Park. And it was the hip place to be. You’d run into places where they were showing on
television just this weekend about Hyde Park like Ribs N Bibs, which is a barbeque place that is still there and
operating probably at a pretty profitable level. There were several other restaurants and movie theaters that
were in the neighborhood. These are the areas that attracted the hippest of people. That’s why I am from
around there. [laugh] It was entertaining. As you got older, you could take advantage of the night life and the
art life was always there. The music, the performances and the Oscar Brown Revue and The Point were there.
The Point is on the lakefront where guys would gather just to read poetry and rap as we used to call it. It doesn’t
mean the musical rap of today, but to have these conversations about the political and social impact of what
was going on to the beat of the bongos. It was a great gathering place for young people, Black and White, in
the city. That’s where Barack settled as a place to live.”
While Taylor agreed with Billups about the positive features of Hyde Park, Taylor also remembered some of
the negative things that had occurred there as well. It was not a place where Barack Obama could necessarily
forget the history of Africans in America. “I believe that the city was instrumental in fanning the flames of racial
prejudice, which actually ensued into what was known as White flight,” Taylor observed. “There
By Jonathan Gramling
Part 3 of 3
While much has been said about the influence President Barack Obama’s childhood spent in
Hawaii and Indonesia, the love and attention that he received from his mother and
grandparents, the absence of his Kenyan father and his Columbia University and Harvard Law
School education. While these are certainly important factors in his life, it was Chicago — and
particularly the south side of Chicago — that molded Obama’s professional and political careers.
In this three part series, The Capital City Hues has been looking at some of the history and
features of Chicago’s south side — an eclectic place from Hyde Park and the University of
Chicago to gang-dominated neighborhoods and everything in between. LaMarr Billups, now an
assistant vice-president at Georgetown University and Hanah Jon Taylor, jazz musician and
instructor at Madison Media Institute, were born and grew up on Chicago’s south side and have
witnessed and experienced many of the same qualities that have molded Barack Obama.
Through their eyes, we are exploring Obama’s Chicago.
****
Part 3 of 3
While much has been said about the influence President Barack Obama’s childhood spent in
Hawaii and Indonesia, the love and attention that he received from his mother and
grandparents, the absence of his Kenyan father and his Columbia University and Harvard Law
School education. While these are certainly important factors in his life, it was Chicago — and
particularly the south side of Chicago — that molded Obama’s professional and political careers.
In this three part series, The Capital City Hues has been looking at some of the history and
features of Chicago’s south side — an eclectic place from Hyde Park and the University of
Chicago to gang-dominated neighborhoods and everything in between. LaMarr Billups, now an
assistant vice-president at Georgetown University and Hanah Jon Taylor, jazz musician and
instructor at Madison Media Institute, were born and grew up on Chicago’s south side and have
witnessed and experienced many of the same qualities that have molded Barack Obama.
Through their eyes, we are exploring Obama’s Chicago.
****
| LaMarr Billups with a cutout of President Barack Obama |
Above: Hanah Jon Taylor with a poster of Billie Holliday in
the background
the background
was an organization called The Woodlawn Organization (TWO), which was organized by people from the University of Chicago. But there was a gentleman by
the name of Saul Alinsky — our neighborhood became part of ‘The Great Experiment.’ — who was instrumental not only in the formation of the TWO, but he was
also instrumental in instigating a volatile situation in the neighborhood that emanated from the emergence of the Black Stone Rangers. It was a kids’ club when I
was coming up. When I went to high school in 1964, at the same time, the gangs were making a transition from being clubs and being gangs. It’s amazing how
everything changed after that.”
And when the University of Chicago bought up a lot of properties around it and turned them into vacant lots, it had a detrimental impact on the
neighborhood. “Instead of developing the vacant lots or redeveloping the area, they sat on the lots,” Taylor said. “Even to this day, Woodlawn and South Hyde
Park look barren where there were once wonderful buildings, enterprises, and jazz clubs up and down 63rd Street. All of that disappeared in the mid 1960s. We
believe strongly and I know there is evidence. I can’t substantiate it enough. But it was always spoken about amongst the elders that the city and the university
had a hand in our neighborhood’s decline. So this was my introduction to Chicago politics.”
And to this day, Taylor feels that some of the university’s policies have a depressing effect on some of the surrounding neighborhoods. “They hand out
pamphlets to the freshmen warning them not to go beyond certain parameters,” Taylor said. “To me that’s kind of like institutional racism because what that does
is present an image of that community that I don’t believe is the most fair to community businesses because the young students believe their lives are in danger if
they go and buy a hamburger or a pair of socks on the other side of 63rd Street. I lived on 64th Street. I knew these kids. That was my introduction to Chicago
politics”
While there were many negative lessons that could be learned in the cauldron of Chicago politics, there were also many effective tools to be learned that
could be used to attain and retain political power. “That is the tremendous lesson that he has taken — that door-to-door politics and raised it to another level,
multimediaized it,” Billups said about the lessons Obama learned from the Chicago political machine. “There are people right now still getting e-mails, still
getting newsletters, still doing work. You might not open all of the e-mails. But you aren’t bothered by it. You aren’t going to unsubscribe. He has taken this
precinct-captain idea out of the bowels of Chicago politics — this ability to touch people personally, affect their lives and know what they need and want — and
multimediaized it. He does it every day. He does it in all sorts of media. He gives you a chance to reach out and touch others. Everyone knew where the ward
boss’ office was, in the neighborhood. If you didn’t know how to get downtown, you knew how to get to the alderman’s office. You might go to the alderman’s
office and ask how you get downtown. He has taken that methodology and implemented it on a national level in a 21st century way. If you read one book about
Chicago politics, ‘Boss,’ by Mike Royko, he’s taken that methodology sans the criminality and cyberspaced it, the cyberspace precinct. It’s amazing.”
And in Billups view, Obama will not forget those lessons once he has gotten in office, surrounded by the wheeling and dealing inside the Beltway of
Washington, D.C. “At the Falls Church celebration of Obama’s inauguration, they were talking about things to do right there and we were celebrating the
inauguration,” Billups recalled. “Everyone is planning for the future and the ways that they can stay engaged and give their opinion so they can be part of the
process. So anyone sitting up in the corner bar with a laptop can connect to Barack Obama right now today. When you meet your buddies after work, bring your
laptop, get online and send an e-mail. If you and your buddies have a good idea, they are going to use it. They will get back to you. That is why he will win the
2012 election handily.”
Witnessing Barack Obama sworn in as the 44th president of the United States was a very emotional moment for both Billups and Taylor. While they weren’t
up in the VIP section to witness the historic event, they have been witnesses to the environment that helped form Barack Obama. In many ways, they have seen
Obama’s inauguration clearly from a long time coming.
the name of Saul Alinsky — our neighborhood became part of ‘The Great Experiment.’ — who was instrumental not only in the formation of the TWO, but he was
also instrumental in instigating a volatile situation in the neighborhood that emanated from the emergence of the Black Stone Rangers. It was a kids’ club when I
was coming up. When I went to high school in 1964, at the same time, the gangs were making a transition from being clubs and being gangs. It’s amazing how
everything changed after that.”
And when the University of Chicago bought up a lot of properties around it and turned them into vacant lots, it had a detrimental impact on the
neighborhood. “Instead of developing the vacant lots or redeveloping the area, they sat on the lots,” Taylor said. “Even to this day, Woodlawn and South Hyde
Park look barren where there were once wonderful buildings, enterprises, and jazz clubs up and down 63rd Street. All of that disappeared in the mid 1960s. We
believe strongly and I know there is evidence. I can’t substantiate it enough. But it was always spoken about amongst the elders that the city and the university
had a hand in our neighborhood’s decline. So this was my introduction to Chicago politics.”
And to this day, Taylor feels that some of the university’s policies have a depressing effect on some of the surrounding neighborhoods. “They hand out
pamphlets to the freshmen warning them not to go beyond certain parameters,” Taylor said. “To me that’s kind of like institutional racism because what that does
is present an image of that community that I don’t believe is the most fair to community businesses because the young students believe their lives are in danger if
they go and buy a hamburger or a pair of socks on the other side of 63rd Street. I lived on 64th Street. I knew these kids. That was my introduction to Chicago
politics”
While there were many negative lessons that could be learned in the cauldron of Chicago politics, there were also many effective tools to be learned that
could be used to attain and retain political power. “That is the tremendous lesson that he has taken — that door-to-door politics and raised it to another level,
multimediaized it,” Billups said about the lessons Obama learned from the Chicago political machine. “There are people right now still getting e-mails, still
getting newsletters, still doing work. You might not open all of the e-mails. But you aren’t bothered by it. You aren’t going to unsubscribe. He has taken this
precinct-captain idea out of the bowels of Chicago politics — this ability to touch people personally, affect their lives and know what they need and want — and
multimediaized it. He does it every day. He does it in all sorts of media. He gives you a chance to reach out and touch others. Everyone knew where the ward
boss’ office was, in the neighborhood. If you didn’t know how to get downtown, you knew how to get to the alderman’s office. You might go to the alderman’s
office and ask how you get downtown. He has taken that methodology and implemented it on a national level in a 21st century way. If you read one book about
Chicago politics, ‘Boss,’ by Mike Royko, he’s taken that methodology sans the criminality and cyberspaced it, the cyberspace precinct. It’s amazing.”
And in Billups view, Obama will not forget those lessons once he has gotten in office, surrounded by the wheeling and dealing inside the Beltway of
Washington, D.C. “At the Falls Church celebration of Obama’s inauguration, they were talking about things to do right there and we were celebrating the
inauguration,” Billups recalled. “Everyone is planning for the future and the ways that they can stay engaged and give their opinion so they can be part of the
process. So anyone sitting up in the corner bar with a laptop can connect to Barack Obama right now today. When you meet your buddies after work, bring your
laptop, get online and send an e-mail. If you and your buddies have a good idea, they are going to use it. They will get back to you. That is why he will win the
2012 election handily.”
Witnessing Barack Obama sworn in as the 44th president of the United States was a very emotional moment for both Billups and Taylor. While they weren’t
up in the VIP section to witness the historic event, they have been witnesses to the environment that helped form Barack Obama. In many ways, they have seen
Obama’s inauguration clearly from a long time coming.