Barack Obama honors Twin Cities' response to ICE surge in presidential center opening speech

Former President Barack Obama praised the actions of the "ordinary people in the Twin Cities" during the immigration surge earlier this year during the opening ceremony of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago on Thursday.

In the speech, Obama emphasized unity in America.

"We want to find a way to turn towards each other again, not further away," Obama said. 

He then cited the bravery of Minnesotans.

"And those ordinary people in the Twin Cities who braved frigid temperatures, risked their own safety, standing shoulder to shoulder to look out for their neighbors and sometimes look out for strangers because they knew that was the right thing to do," he said.

The president's remarks came just hours after Human Rights Watch released a scathing report on Operation Metro Surge, accusing the Trump administration of creating a "human rights crisis" by dispatching thousands of federal immigration officers to Minnesota earlier this year.

In his speech Thursday, Obama also honored "rural communities that have rebuilt their economy" and "businesses finding new ways to make housing affordable."

The Obama Presidential Center has been in the works for a decade and is set to open to the public on Friday. Located in the south side of Chicago, the 20-acre project features a library, museum, basketball court and park meant to serve the community where Obama lived and launched his political career.

The ceremony featured performances from Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Hudson and The Roots, as well as a speech from former first lady Michelle Obama.

The former president closed his remarks urging the people of America to "keep fighting to fulfill the promise of this nation, even in the face of cruelty. It is in that spirit that we open this center."