A new and imposing structure is taking shape on the Chicago skyline, and it has quickly become the internet’s latest source of amusement. The Obama Presidential Center, a sprawling 19-acre campus in Jackson Park, is nearing completion and is slated to open in the spring of 2026. While the project promises to be a vibrant community hub with gardens, a library branch, and spaces for civic engagement, the design of its main museum tower has captured public attention for reasons its architects likely never anticipated.
The center was conceived as a departure from traditional presidential libraries. Instead of a quiet repository for physical archives, it aims to be a dynamic center for community life and collective action. The main building’s unique design, described by the Obama Foundation as resembling four hands coming together, is inscribed with words from the former president’s Selma anniversary speech. The intention is to symbolize unity and forward movement, creating a modern monument to a modern presidency.
However, as new images of the nearly completed 225-foot-tall tower circulated online, the public reaction took a sharp and humorous turn. The conversation was ignited when Senator Ted Cruz made a joking reference on social media, suggesting that locating the “Death Star” in Chicago was a bold move. This single comment opened the floodgates to a wave of creative comparisons and memes that quickly went viral across multiple platforms.
The internet’s imagination ran wild. Users photoshopped the concrete-and-granite building into scenes from Star Wars, complete with tiny X-Wing fighters attacking its facade. Others superimposed the fiery Eye of Sauron from The Lord of the Rings on its peak. More grounded, but no less humorous, comparisons were made to monolithic Easter Island heads and even common household objects, with one user dubbing it the “Litter Genie Plus Pail,” suggesting it resembled a high-tech trash bin.
Despite the online roasting, the Obama Foundation remains focused on its mission. The center will feature digital archives from Obama’s administration, a great lawn for public gatherings, and meaningful tributes like the Hadiya Pendleton Atrium. While the building’s bold, brutalist-inspired aesthetic may not be to everyone’s taste, it has certainly succeeded in getting people talking, proving that even in its unfinished state, the center is already engaging the public in a conversation all its own.
