tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6000885858345884555.post-51718524452237599812008-07-17T13:36:00.010-05:002008-07-18T17:30:22.990-05:00Barack Obama will not be pleased.<br /><br />Calypso Cafe, a restaurant he called his favorite in Hyde Park according to this week's New Yorker, will be vacating the area.<br /><br />According to a <a href="http://312diningdiva.blogspot.com/2008/07/famed-restaurants-to-leave-harper-court.html">blog post</a> that Justin dug up, Calypso Cafe, C'est Si Bon and Dixie Kitchen will leave Harper Court now that the University owns the property.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/21/080721fa_fact_lizza">New Yorker article </a> (yes, the one with <a href="https://w1.buysub.com/pubs/N3/NYR/self_051103.jsp?cds_page_id=26445&amp;cds_mag_code=NYR&amp;id=1216318719865&amp;lsid=81991317518060638&amp;vid=3&amp;cds_response_key=IQDNMDFT&amp;cds_mag_code=NYR">THAT</a> cover) focuses on Obama's quick political ascent, charting how he laid roots in Hyde Park.<br /><br />The very in-depth (read: long) article will interest students, Hyde Parkers, and anyone who likes to read about the Democratic presidential nominee (perhaps three groups with some overlap?). It quotes Will Burns - a UChicago grad, Chicago pol, and former Obama aide - who had this say about UChicago's role on the South Side:<br /><br />“Even though the University of Chicago is one of the largest employers on the South Side of Chicago, it is seen by some, particularly black nationalists, as a bastion of white political power, as a huge entity that doesn’t take into account the interests of the community, that doesn’t have a full democratic partnership with the community, and does what it wants to the community in maintaining clear boundaries about where black people are. It’s seen as an expansive force, trying to expand into Bronzeville and into Woodlawn”—historically black neighborhoods adjacent to Hyde Park—“and put poor blacks out of the area. The University of Chicago is not a brand that helps you if you’re trying to get votes on the South Side of Chicago.”<br /><br />Whether you consider it an informative read could hinge on how you feel about using the <a href="http://www.hpherald.com/pg3.html">Hyde Park Herald</a> "as a sort of time capsule" - the article cites it over nine times. Either way, it's still worth checking out to see your local alderman <a href="http://egov.cityofchicago.org/city/webportal/portalEntityHomeAction.do?entityName=Ward4&amp;entityNameEnumValue=49">Toni Preckwinkle</a> raking in some national attention. It starts with Preckwinkle - calling her a "tall, commanding woman" - and includes a few of her characteristically blunt remarks, this time targetting the Democratic presidential nominee.Sara Jeromehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08578538240285165297noreply@blogger.com