-It was interesting that the Latino population did not suffer as much deaths as the African American population in Chicago. This is because the “low-income Latino communities live largely outside of the most extreme poverty areas in the city,” while the low-income black communities live in these extreme poverty and dangerous areas. Thus, the African American neighborhoods received little assistance from the state because the social workers did not want to enter these areas. I found this to be ridiculous because it these social service providers were not doing their jobs. If these social service providers actually went to these areas, the death rate in these neighborhoods would not have been so high.
– I found that Mayor Daley did not do his job efficiently during the heat wave. Instead of taking responsibility, he blamed the victims of the heat wave. He believed it was their own fault for not taking care of themselves and each other. He refused to acknowledge that the city failed to respond to the heat properly. The government was partially at fault because Daley did not issue a Heat Emergency warning and did not activate emergency procedures. The police and the fire department were not prepared to handle the effects of the heat wave. It is ironic that the Mayor’s commission said “government cannot do it all,” since two weeks after the heat wave, another heat wave challenged the city again. This time, an emergency plan was executed that secured the health and welfare of the citizens.