Newly Organized Advocacy Group Supports Obama Presidential Center In Jackson Park

South Side Neighbors for Hope is a newly formed advocacy group in favor of the Obama Presidential Center (OPC) coming to Jackson Park. The organization hopes to create a unified voice to support the OPC and ensure all residents benefit from the investment that will come along with it. Photo Credit: Provided by South Side Neighbors for Hope
South Side Neighbors for Hope is a newly formed advocacy group in favor of the Obama Presidential Center (OPC) coming to Jackson Park. The organization hopes to create a unified voice to support the OPC and ensure all residents benefit from the investment that will come along with it. Photo Credit: Provided by South Side Neighbors for Hope

Newly Organized Advocacy Group Supports Obama Presidential Center In Jackson Park

BY KATHERINE NEWMAN

Nearly a dozen residents from several of the communities surrounding Jackson Park recently came together to organize Southside Neighbors For Hope (SSN4H), an advocacy group in favor of the Obama Presidential Center (OPC) coming to the park.

“We really want to be a fact-based educational group but also an advocacy

group to get people motivated to understand what the OPC really will bring to the south side of Chicago and motivate people to get out and voice their opinions. We also want to make sure some of the hurdles that are being thrown up for the presidential center are not inhibitory to its progress,” said Erin Adams, co-founder and chair of SSN4H.

The group of founders are future neighbors of the Obama Presidential Center and believe that the OPC will encourage major investment in the surrounding neighborhoods and ignite a community revitalization.

One reason for organizing SSN4H was to provide resources for the community and the media that do not focus on the controversy or negativity surrounding the OPC, according to Adams.

“We felt like there were lots of groups out there being focused on that were negative and very oppositional to the OPC but there wasn’t another group to provide contrast. We wanted to be able to be a recognized group that the media could call on and be able to provide some contrast to the negativity,” said Adams.

The organization has a wealth of information on their website regarding the OPC and will continue to update that information as things progress in the hopes of becoming a respected resource for the community.

While SSN4H does enthusiastically support the OPC in Jackson Park, they are not blind to the community concerns regarding displacement and who will reap the benefits of revitalization.

“There are some things I want to see change in my community. I want it to be safe, I want it to be clean, and I want there to be really good educational opportunities but I don’t want the people to change that are the key and the heart of our community,” said Adams. “The Presidential Center is bringing in job training and opportunity for jobs and that is an immediate consequence of the groundbreaking of the OPC. Even more, this is attracting a lot of interest in South Shore, Woodlawn, and even Washington Park for investment.”

The organization hopes to work harmoniously with residents, community

leaders, and elected officials to make sure that the people, culture, and history of the south side is protected as the city makes room for the OPC and all that will come along with it.

“Our hope is that we can help to create a unified voice that can really put pressure on City Hall and the aldermen to make sure that the changes are beneficial for all of us and not just a subset of us,” said Adams.

To learn more about SSN4H visit www.sosiden4hope.org.

Latest Stories

Latest Podcast

STARR Community Services International, Inc.