what it means to overcome ; autumn burris ’ 11
When Autumn Burris applied to UC SAN DIEGO , she was in her mid-40s , a single mom , and a sex trafficking survivor .
“ I NEVER THOUGHT IN A MILLION YEARS I would get in . But there is nothing impossible in my world . So I applied and got in ,” she says , smoothing out a strand of long brown hair .
We ’ re at an outdoor table at a hotel just off campus , not far from the freshfaced wedding party dressed in bow ties and lacy dresses that has taken over the lounge . Burris explains how she thought she ’ d complete the accelerated paralegal program , but instead she ended up with a degree in political science and public policy , with a minor in human rights .
“ I am an activist ,” she says . “ I wanted to make a different kind of impact . I wanted to work on policies and make sure they are survivor-informed . I wanted to help make things better for the exploited person right now . I felt like , at my age , that is where I could make the biggest impact .”
Burris graduated in 2011 at the age of 46 . By December 2012 , she was invited to speak on behalf of sex trafficking survivors at the Stakeholders ’ Forum in preparation for the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women . “ I spoke in front of heads of countries and global stakeholders . I wasn ’ t nervous because I graduated from UCSD , so I knew all about how the U . N . worked . I knew what stakeholders meant , and I knew who in the room was important .” Burris smiles at the memory before continuing . “ When I walked into that room it was such a rush . I had five minutes . I said , ‘ Five minutes isn ’ t enough time to talk about prostitution ,’ and they said , ‘ Heads of countries don ’ t even get five minutes !’ So , I sucked it up and I made my shit happen .”
Burris has been invited back to speak at the same conference numerous times . Last year she spoke on the # MeToo movement , about how “ prostitution is # MeToo on steroids .” Today she ’ s just come from another speaking engagement at UC San Diego , the Time to Rise ! Global Empowerment Summit , an annual event hosted by the Social Impact and Innovation Program at the Qualcomm Institute . As Naila Chowdhury , summit organizer and director of social impact & innovation at UC San Diego explains , “ It ’ s time to rise with action and solutions , time to build bridges , create a platform for voices , time to empower women and youth , the next generation of leaders who are the custodians of our future . We want to leave behind a safer , engaged , inclusive , compassionate and responsible campus , society and world .” Burris is an accomplished and highly-sought after leader toward this kind of world , one in which human trafficking and systems of prostitution have no place . She is also a firm voice for those who have survived those systems — having been through them herself .
BURRIS GREW UP IN THE COASTAL TOWN of Corpus Christi , Texas . “ I was a straight-A student ," she says . “ I was an overachieving kid . I came from a family that was upper middle class . I grew up in a mentally ill and dysfunctional family , but , like , who didn ’ t ?”
When Burris talks about her past , her demeanor changes . Without realizing it , she shifts in her chair . Her eyes move to the walkway beyond us , where a couple walks by with a fluffy dog . A bike whips past . She lights a cigarette and exhales toward the tree-lined path before continuing . “ I feel like it wasn ’ t necessarily only my childhood that drove me into being vulnerable to the sex trade ,” she explains . “ It was more about the things that happened to me as a teenager .”
She collects her thoughts for a moment and says that there are aspects and locations in her life story she does not feel safe to share .
In her early teens , Burris was involved in an abusive relationship . Her boyfriend told her she was fat , ugly , and that no one would ever love her but him . Then , at the age of 17 , she was gang-raped by a group of peers and subsequently , by a group of authority figures on the beach after exiting the water from a boogie board session .
“ It was a good ol ’ boys club . You didn ’ t tell . You kept your mouth shut and you moved on . I ended up having to [ move away ] because of the excruciating shame around the gang rape . I didn ’ t tell anyone about the rape . I mean , the whole community knew it happened — the kids in my age group — but back in those days it wasn ’ t like we had # MeToo or # TimesUp , it was like , ‘ You are the bad girl .’ It ’ s always the bad girl ,” Burris explains with a heavy sigh .
It wasn ’ t until leaving her hometown , to a location she does not want to disclose , that Burris became a sex trafficking victim .
“ I ended up getting trafficked by organized crime into the stripping industry ,” she says . Burris doesn ’ t elaborate on this chapter in her life , due to safety concerns . But she grew tired of stripping quickly . She didn ’ t like having her hours controlled or paying stage fees and tipping out at the end of the night . “ I decided to follow the American dream and go into business for myself ,” she says . “ I went into [ what was called ] back then , street prostitution . Most of my buyers were politicians . A lot of it was high-end , some low-end , and all points in between . But it feels the same to the human psyche and the physical body , because it is paid rape .
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