The Barack Obama Presidential Library, a towering and controversial structure in a low-income Chicago neighborhood, has been described as resembling a menacing sci-fi headquarters. This nearly windowless $850 million complex sparks debate: is it a monument or a mausoleum?
In the absence of a royal family or state religion, the US presidency has increasingly filled a void, evolving over time into a form of national personality cult, complete with secular temples dedicated to its leaders. The newest addition to this trend is the Obama Presidential Center, set to open on Chicago’s South Side. It stands as a colossal tribute to the 44th president, Barack Obama.
Despite an image of humility in office, Obama, in his post-presidency career as a Netflix producer, has commissioned the largest, most expensive, and most ambitious complex of its kind. This structure, sometimes morbidly referred to as the “Obamalisk” or “Obamausoleum,” dominates the skyline as a significant landmark.
English Translation:
Towering over a low-income area of Chicago, and wrapped in a speech that’s hard to decipher, this controversial monolith feels like a menacing sci-fi HQ. Is it a monument – or a mausoleum?
Egyptians had their pyramids, and Anglo-Saxons had their barrows. Americans, however, have their presidential libraries, with the key distinction being that the leaders the US reveres are typically still alive when these institutions open. Lacking a royal family or state religion, the US presidency has expanded to fill this gap, transforming over the decades into a national personality cult, complete with its own secular temples dedicated to these powerful men.
The latest grand edifice is about to open on Chicago’s South Side, where it looms on the skyline as a towering totem to the 44th president, Barack Obama. While he might have appeared humble in office, in his post-presidential, Netflix-producing afterlife, Obama has erected the largest, costliest, and most audacious complex of them all. Behold the $850 million Obamalisk – or, as it sometimes morbidly feels, the Obamausoleum.