As the residents of the Gulf Coast keep an eye on Gustav, today marks the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall along the Louisiana and Mississippi coast. And while, on the surface, it seems most memorials would be confined to that region, there's no underscoring the amazing contribution Chicago made to the relief effort. The city of Chicago opened its arms to evacuees and learned from the experience for its own emergency plan. Chicagoans donated not just money but much-needed water. The Red Cross estimated that roughly 7,000 Katrina evacuees wound up in Chicago while other estimates were as high as 9,000 (one of the highest totals outside the Southeast). The rift between Illinois's politicians seen in Katrina's wake reflected what was happening across the country: while Dennis Hastert questioned the decision to rebuild (reasoning that's not nearly as outlandish as it originally sounded when read in context), Mayor Daley expressed outrage at FEMA's refusal for assistance. And, of course, who could forget Chicagoan Kanye West's dramatic declaration during the nationally broadcast telethon? more ›