World Loses Anthony Bourdain, Champion of Diversity and Inclusion -- and Immigrants

The shocking loss to suicide of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain has dominated the news in recent days.  Bourdain had quite a following.  As CNN reports, "[o]n his award-winning series, "Parts Unknown," Bourdain brought the world home to CNN viewers. Through the simple act of sharing meals, he showcased both the extraordinary diversity of cultures and cuisines, yet how much we all have in common."

In one of the many eulogies to Bourdain's life, Gustavo Arellano for the Los Angeles Times writes that "Anthony Bourdain was the eternal compadre of overlooked Latinos."  He elaborates:

"Bourdain understood his privilege and used it as a cudgel to force Americans to think about our role in the world. He was particularly unsparing to our hypocrisies on Latino immigration. He spoke throughout his career about how Latinos (since he was a New Yorker, specifically Ecuadoreans, Salvadorans and Mexicans from the state of Puebla) were his eternal compadres, because of their work ethic and hilarity and giving ways. Anyone who opposed more of them coming into the United States, he said, was simply deranged."

Bourdain publicly criticized Donald Trump's immigration policies:

 

KJ