Is This the Most Diverse Place in the History of the World Ever?

Photo courtesy of GAYA G.

I was munching on yucca fries at Cholita Linda one evening, and I couldn’t help but marvel at the cornucopia of diversity gathered within. A panoply of differentness evenly distributed throughout the restaurant.

“Wow … I think Cholita Linda is, like, the most diverse place ever,” I noted sarcastically.

But often there’s an element of truth hiding behind one’s own sarcasm — and after returning many times for delicious pressed toasty Cuban sandwiches and being regaled with similar scenes of multicultural harmony, I started to ponder, Am I merely flattering my liberal sensibilities, or is there something special going on here? Cholita Linda feels different from any other place I’ve ever been to. What if a confluence of societal dynamics has created a salsa-splattered locus of peak diversity? What if in the history of the world there’s never been such a mix of all different peoples in one place? What would that even mean? And if not Cholita Linda, where would the most diverse spot in the history of the world be?

Diversity is embedded in the body, the brain, the history and the heart. It resides in the pocket, the bed, the bank and the bookshelf. It is imprinted on our genes and proteins and cells and mutated cells. There’s diversity that is readily perceived, categorized and judged. There…