It’s been nearly a week since my flight landed here in Orange County, and these first few days have been quite busy. From the second I landed, it has been very apparent just how wealthy Orange County is. On the ride to our apartment, we marveled at how beautiful both the landscape and the houses were, but once you get past the opulence on display, there’s much more going on in Orange County. In addition to being one of the wealthiest counties in the country, Orange County is also one of the biggest centers for human trafficking — modern day slavery. This is what brought me out here for the summer: working with A21, an organization whose central purpose is to bring about an end to human trafficking, and I spent most of this past week getting to know the staff and training for the work I’ll be doing this summer. I expect the work this summer to be challenging in a lot of ways, but I’m excited to see what the next few months have in store, both in the time I’ll be spending at A21, and in the opportunity to experience both Orange County and California as a whole.
