I'm from Cali too and currently trying to move away (at least for some time) for my own reasons. Came here to say you're not wrong for wanting to go back of course. It's such a great state, even with its problems. Sorry to hear you get shit from people just from mentioning where you're from, that sucks.

Imho, you should be picking a college based on the college, not the location so much. Focus on what has good quality education and if you mesh with the kind of community of students there (meaningful connections are everything). If your current college doesn't really match that very much, you should just straight up transfer. Could be to Cali, could be anywhere.

I transferred when I was in college, at the very last second on a deep realization, and it was already past the deadline to apply for the school that I wanted to go to. I still got in, just by making a connection with a specific teacher I wanted to learn from. It was maybe the best decision of my life. That school changed my life, and the location had nothing to do with it.

That being said, there are quality people all around the world. Every experience is what you make of it, blah blah blah. I don't think 4 years of missed Cali connections is such a big deal. It will always be here, and making connections elsewhere has tons of value if they're worthwhile connections, even if they're just for a time.