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Barack Obama Gives Urban Alliance Interns the Surprise of Their Lives
By Jay Connor
July 18, 2019
In his efforts to further cement his status as the coolest former president of all-time, Barack Obama treated students at his Obama Foundation to a special surprise.
On Tuesday, the Hill reports that our forever president pulled up on a group of Urban Alliance interns, more commonly known as the Obama Youth Job Corps as a result of their partnership with the Obama Foundation, during a meeting at their Chicago offices.
“As you guys know, part of the goal of this program is to expose you to what’s possible. Also to make sure you recognize that even as you succeed, the communities from which you come are going to need you to be active and engaged and focused,” the former president told the collection of shocked students.
He added, “You guys are just such good role models for so many people your age.”
Established in 2018, the Urban Alliance was created “to increase access to economic opportunity for high school students in some of the most underserved communities in Chicago.” More specifically, it provides “readiness training and early, meaningful work experience at businesses throughout the city,” in addition to the “skills, experience, and exposure needed to succeed,” according to the Urban Alliance website.
Twitter had plenty of love for both Obama and the interns once the video hit the Internet.
Considering all the hurdles they’ll face throughout the course of their lives, it’s dope to see initiatives such as these attempt to balance the scales and provide each of these students with the requisite skills to leave a profound impact on our communities.