Snapshot · The Indicator from Planet Money
The South Side is not just a symbolic term — it is literally the largest geographic section of Chicago and was for decades the largest Black neighborhood in the United States.
Where this was said
At 12:15 · chapter starts 11:00
Gene Demby pivots to ask how younger South Siders — who have no memory of a pre-Obama America — relate to his legacy. Myra Kwadja's answer is quietly devastating: the students she worked with at Hyde Park Academy found nothing remarkable about a Black president, not because they were inspired but because they were disengaged. Their entire relationship with government was mediated through policing: cop cars stationed outside the school expecting a fight, the constant surveillance of young Black bodies in public space. When Kwadja took students to vote after they turned 18, or interviewed those who didn't want to, she found that participating in civic life felt indistinguishable from submitting to police authority. Obama's visits to Hyde Park Academy were cool — he's a celebrity, after all — but they produced no 'me too, I could be that' feeling. [1] — Myra Kwadja "For the high school students Myra Kwadja worked with, Obama was a celebrity — not a beacon of possibility. Their relationship with governme…" 11:00 The children who grew up in Obama's Chicago did not inherit his hope. They inherited his neighborhood's policing.
For the high school students Myra Kwadja worked with, Obama was a celebrity — not a beacon of possibility. Their relationship with government was filtered entirely through daily police presence, making voting feel like just another form of being surveilled.
Obama advisor David Axelrod famously argued that nobody uses Jackson Park when advocating for building the center there. Myra Kwadja hears those words every time she bikes through for cherry blossoms or the house music picnic — because 'nobody' really means 'certain nobodies.'
Kierkegaard's concept of anxiety as 'the dizziness of freedom' predates Freud's psychological framework by roughly 60 years, yet modern research has since validated his core claims about commitment and identity.
Between 2003 and 2020, Americans accumulated roughly 24 extra hours per month spent alone — the equivalent of a part-time job's worth of isolation, and that's before the pandemic.
Median age at first marriage climbed from 21 (women) and 23 (men) in the 1970s to nearly 29 (women) and 30 (men) today — a rise of 6–8 years per gender, extending the 'emerging adulthood' liminal phase.
San Francisco's average rent rose 18% over the past two years to $3,728/month, surpassing New York City as the most expensive rental market in the country.
San Francisco's average monthly rent now stands at $3,728, surpassing New York City to become the most expensive rental city in the United States.
At a childhood sleepover, Bobby Lee's friends drew penises on his face and he walked 7 miles home on a dirt road before being picked up by Eric Purvis's mom.
In 1950, about 60% of the world lived in extreme poverty; today it's about 1 in 10, attributable to capitalist economic growth.
From 2021 to 2024, 6 million children fell below the poverty line in the US after the expanded child tax credit expired.
Private domestic infant and international adoptions typically cost $40,000 to $70,000, while foster care adoption is the most affordable route at $0 to $2,000.
We use essential and analytics cookies to run Vuci. To understand how the site is used: Privacy Policy.
Install Vuci on your phone
Add it to your home screen for a faster, app-like experience.
Install Vuci on your phone
Tap the Share button, then “Add to Home Screen”.
A new version is available
Reload to get the latest Vuci.