doi:10.7916/q87m-rp98Oral history interview with Bruce Orenstein, 2022Orenstein, Bruceoral historiesmixed materialPresidents--United StatesCommunity organization--History--20th century.--United StatesCommunity organization--History--21st century.--United StatesCommunity development, Urban--United StatesSocial movements--History.--United StatesUnemployment--IllinoisHousing--IllinoisDeindustrialization--IllinoisChicago (Ill.) Social conditionsSouth Side (Chicago, Ill.) Social conditionsOrenstein, BruceObama, BarackWashington, Harold, 1922-1987Bruce Orenstein reflects on his career as a community organizer in Chicago during the 1980s, and discusses his relationship and collaborations with Barack Obama. Orenstein outlines the methods, practices, and strategies of the community organizing efforts with which he was closely involved, and discusses the prevailing conditions in the communities on Chicago's South Side in which he was working, including the lack of employment opportunities amid long-term deindustrialization, the inaccessibility of adequate housing and mortgage financing, and the closure of notable stores and businesses. Orenstein speaks widely about the organizing effort in the late-1980s surrounding the siting and health effects of the Waste Management landfill between the Altgeld Gardens and Southeast Chicago neighborhoods, and he provides details about the notable personalities, organizations, interests, and communities involved in the effort; the role of Obama and the Developing Communities Project; and the significance of Harold Washington's death in 1987. Orenstein also shares his impressions of the significance of community organizing methods to the Obama 2008 presidential campaign, and he remembers the optimism about the potential of the Organizing for America (OFA) grassroots apparatus following the 2008 election and the disappointment about the incorporation of OFA into the Democratic National Committee. Also discussed are Orenstein's memories of Obama during the 1980s and 1990s, Obama's observations about the limitations of Saul Alinsky-style community organizing, and the importance of developing local leaders to expand the power of communities