(AURN News) — Aug. 4 marks former President Barack Obama’s 65th birthday.
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1961, Obama rose from community organizing and the Illinois Senate to become a U.S. senator and, in 2008, the first Black president of the United States.
Obama graduated from Columbia University in 1983 and became the first Black president of the Harvard Law Review in 1990 before earning his law degree from Harvard University in 1991.
After moving to Chicago, Obama worked as a civil rights lawyer and taught constitutional law part time at the University of Chicago Law School.
Elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996, he served there until joining the U.S. Senate in 2005.
During Obama’s tenure as the nation’s 44th president from 2009 to 2017, his administration helped guide the country through the Great Recession, expanded access to health insurance through the Affordable Care Act and advanced diplomacy and LGBTQ rights.
His administration also oversaw the operation that killed Osama bin Laden and signed the Paris Agreement on climate change.
Since leaving office, Obama has remained active through the Obama Foundation, supporting young leaders, civic engagement and community-based change around the world.
In June, he and former first lady Michelle Obama officially opened the Obama Presidential Center on Chicago’s South Side, where his political career began.
The center preserves his presidential legacy while serving as a public space focused on culture, education and civic engagement.
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