Obama museum lets visitors sit behind Oval Office desk, touch iconic dresses

The Obama Presidential Center opened to the general public on June 19 after a celebratory dedication in Chicago with dignitaries. But tens of thousands of people–friends and family of museum staff, students, and journalists–have already been offered a sneak peek as crews finish final art installations and landscaping. The roughly $850 million project covers both the political and personal realms of the nation’s first Black president. Campaign memorabilia and presidential artifacts are displayed in the admission-based museum tower, while public spaces of the sprawling campus feature other things important to Obama: a new library, basketball court, and picnic area with grills. “This is a safe space for people to come and, yes, reflect on the historic moments of this presidency and the campaigns, but also to come together as a community to think about what change you can bring to your own neighborhood,” Josh Harris, the Obama Foundation’s vice president of public engagement, said during a tour with The Associated Press. Unlike other presidential museums, Obama’s doesn’t contain reams of official papers. It’s the first fully digitized presidential museum where unclassified documents can be viewed through a website they are calling a “digital reading room.” Visitors to the museum will get to walk into a life-sized replica of the Oval Office. On a recent day, a stream of visitors, including school children, walked through the circular room, stopping to sit behind the desk and pose for pictures. One drawer holds a copy of a handwritten letter from predecessor former President George W. Bush and Obama’s beloved BlackBerry phone. “We want to make sure that people from all walks of life have the opportunity to sit behind the Resolute Desk,” said Harris. “You think about the possibilities that if a young organizer from the South Side of Chicago can be president, you can be president too.” Several of the ballgowns Michelle Obama wore as first lady are displayed on mannequins behind glass, including a black and red dress designed by Narciso Rodriguez that the former first lady wore on Election Night in Chicago. Visitors will also get a chance to touch swatches of the fabrics, including the rose gold chain-mail Atelier Versace evening gown she wore at her final state dinner in 2016. This article was provided by The Associated Press.