Former President Obama Seeks to Build US Civic Engagement at Summit

Former U.S. President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that at a time of political divisiveness, more civic activism was needed to solve community problems across the nation. Obama kicked off a two-day leadership summit in his hometown of Chicago by saying it marked the start of a wider effort to promote civic activism, a cause that has emerged as a major emphasis of his post-presidency. “Our goal here is not to create a political movement,” Obama said. “What we need to do is think about our civic culture. Because what’s wrong with our politics is partly a reflection of something wrong in our civic culture,” Obama said in an address that did not mention U.S. President Donald Trump. Obama addressed 500 young leaders from 60 nations and 27 U.S. states at the first Obama Foundation summit. They will hear from such speakers as Britain’s Prince Harry, former Italian Prime Minister …

Read more