New York Is One of the Most Diverse States in America

New York is a national leader when it comes to diversity.

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, which kicked off September 15, WalletHub conducted a survey to see how each state ranks in terms of diversity.

The website also felt it was appropriate to look into the issue because, for the first time in history, women now hold more than 10% of Fortune 500 CEO positions.

Read More: Is New York the Happiest State in America?

The study used data pertaining to each state's socio-economic, cultural, economic, household, religious and political diversity.

The states that ranked in the bottom five were Montana, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and West Virginia.

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On the other hand, New York emerged at the top of the list with impressive scores in socioeconomic, cultural and household diversity.

New York in the Top 10

WalletHub placed the Empire State in 8th place overall, but there were some categories where our state shined in the national roundup.

For example, New York ranked third best in terms of socioeconomic diversity as well as educational-attainment diversity. We were also fourth best in household diversity and linguistic diversity.

Read More: New York Among Top 10 Best States for Tech Startups

Our state ranked eighth best in terms of cultural diversity, seventh best in racial & ethnic diversity -  but we took a beating in terms of economic diversity - coming in 43rd place overall.

Contributing to that latter result was our 20th place finish in worker-class diversity and 23rd place finish in marital-status diversity.

However, we also came in 48th place when measuring our industry diversity. When it comes to the states that bested New York across the board, here were the top 5 states:

5. Florida

4. New Jersey

3. Hawaii

2. Texas

1. California

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What the experts say

Aldofo Cuevas from New York University's School of Public Health weighed in on the latest findings. He believes states stand to gain more benefits when they are more diverse.

Living in an area with diversity provides people with the unique opportunity to engage with and embrace cultures, traditions, and languages that might otherwise remain beyond their reach. This immersion, if people genuinely try, can foster cultural enrichment and pave the way for personal growth and self-discovery. I believe this allows people to have a wider social network that can open doors for career growth and business opportunities as they can understand and better care for coworkers, employees, and clients.

As for potential challenges, Cuevas says some communities can feel tension and that could lead to segregation and gentrification. He also warned that not working to address these challenges can fuel cultural and racial tensions.

Diversity in Central New York

The three individuals vying to become the new mayor of Utica squared off in a debate sponsored by the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce and The Sentinel.

Candidates Mike Galime (Republican), Celeste Friend (Democrat) and Bob Cardillo (Conservative) tackled the controversial subject of Utica's migrant population and New York's struggle to house asylum seekers.

Recently, busses of migrants have been sent to the Empire State and the state is struggling to provide shelter for all of them. This has caused migrants to be sent to Upstate New York and Governor Kathy Hochul has expressed a desire for Utica to house more asylum seekers.

Read More: 3 Candidates for Utica Mayor Go Face to Face During Live Debate

While Utica's migrant communities have benefitted the city, the mayoral candidates seemingly opposed the idea of making Utica a Sanctuary City. They also expressed concern that Utica is already struggling to provide assistance to the migrants that have already arrived in Oneida County, which is also impacting resources to vulnerable residents like the city's homeless population.

You can watch the full, 90-minute debate below:

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