The Barack Obama Senior Harvard Story

Barack Hussein Obama

Barack Obama Sr., born in Kenya in 1936, was part of a group of elite Kenyan students selected for U.S. education in the late 1950s and early 1960s to prepare for Kenya's independence from Britain in 1963. He initially studied at the University of Hawaii, where in 1961 he married Stanley Ann Dunham—the mother of future President Barack Obama—while still legally married to his first wife, Grace Kezia Obama, back in Kenya. This situation raised concerns with U.S. immigration officials, who considered deporting him for bigamy but instead monitored him closely, noting his polygamous background common among the Luo ethnic group.

"They are going to try to cook something up to ease him out." - M.F. McKeon

In 1962, Obama Sr. transferred to Harvard University to pursue graduate studies in economics, aiming for a PhD. By 1964, he had passed his qualifying exams and was initially cleared to remain in the U.S. for his dissertation. However, Harvard administrators, including the economics department chairman, John Dunlop, and Harvard's Foreign Student Advisor, Mr. Henry, decided to "ease him out" due to ongoing issues with his personal life and finances. Primary source materials obtained by Sally Jacobs via FOIA in 2009 reveal the details. For instance, a May 19, 1964, INS memo from N.F. McKeon notes a conversation with Mr. Henry, stating that although Obama Sr. had passed his general exams and was academically entitled to stay and write his thesis, university officials were "going to try to cook something up to ease him out. All three will have to agree on this, however. They are planning on telling him that they will not give him any money, and that he had better return to Kenya and prepare his thesis at home."

A subsequent INS memo dated June 8, 1964, also from McKeon, describes Harvard's response to Obama Sr.'s application for a visa extension: "They weren't very impressed with him and asked for us to hold up action on his application until they decided what action they could take in order to get rid of him. They were apparently having difficulty with his financial arrangements and couldn't seem to figure out how many wives he had." The memo recommends denying the extension, placing him under docket control, and giving him until July 8, 1964, to depart, attaching a copy of Harvard's May 27, 1964, letter advising him to terminate his stay and return to Kenya to carry on his research and write his thesis.

M.F. McKeon INS memo, June 8, 1964

Harvard's international office informed him he had three weeks to leave the country. He departed in July 1964 without completing his PhD, though the university later cited a lack of funds as the official reason for his exit.

Obama Sr. was awarded a terminal master's degree from Harvard in 1965. The PhD rejection, attributed in part to the university's discomfort with his concurrent marriages, derailed his academic and professional trajectory. Upon returning to Kenya, he struggled to secure high-level positions, working in lower roles until his death in a car accident in 1982. His unfinished thesis was reportedly stolen in 1964, and he never earned the doctorate despite later claims to the contrary. Journalist Sally Jacobs, who obtained his INS files via FOIA in 2009, detailed this story in her book "The Other Barack" and a Boston Globe article.

On X

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

Let’s start talking academic conspiracies then. We need a swift & devastating takedown of the idea that they are rare. They are, in fact, common. Ubiquitous. Everywhere.

I’ll start. Why is @BarackObama not the son of a Harvard PhD? Have fun.

Millions are dead. I’m done playing.

3:57 PM · Nov 4, 2022

lonewolf

@AgramSeth

Here is the moment quoted by @Ayjchan … “this is beginning to reek of conspiracy theory” is the only shield these lying cowards have left. We must reject the label & boldly follow the facts wherever they lead. We owe it to our children. #slipTheDisc @EricRWeinstein

3:45 PM · Nov 4, 2022

brian j steele

@brianstrx

4:03 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

@stbrianjoseph @BarackObama Warm. Keep going.

4:08 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Daniel Yeh

@yeky83

Harvard couldn’t figure out how many wives he had concurrently (at least two) and kicked him out.

4:28 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

@yeky83 @BitcoinCarni @stbrianjoseph @BarackObama Now you’re “cooking”. Almost there...

4:53 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

@Dogensteardrop @BarackObama “cook something up”.

4:24 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Brooke Dallas

@BrookeDallas

4:24 PM · Nov 4, 2022

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

@BrookeDallas @Dogensteardrop @BarackObama Super Omnia:

3:34 AM · Nov 6, 2022

Eric Weinstein

@EricRWeinstein

I’ve been talking openly about:

Geometric Unity v String Thy: 41yrs
Epstein as IC Construct: 21yrs
H-1B as @nsf Fraud: 35+yrs
Mortgage Backed (MBS) Peril: 2001-
All of Society Kayfabe: 35yrs?
Peer Review is Recent & Fake: 40yrs?
Harvard/NYT Cook the Narrative: 40yrs

And…yeah.

2:02 PM · Nov 19, 2025

Potassium edge🫡

@PotassiumEdge

What's funny is if you said this 10 years ago you would sound completely crazy. In 2025 these are all reasonable questions.

9:10 AM · Nov 19, 2025

Related Pages

• Great Moderation
• H-1B Visa
• Kayfabe
• Jeffrey Epstein
• Peer Review
• Responsible Conspiracy Theorizing
• Seberging
• Sharp Minds vs Sharp Elbows
• Theory of Geometric Unity
• Universal Institutional Betrayal