Jannie Lau, Delaware County Delegate
“I wanted to grow up to be an American citizen.”
From Beaver County to Bucks County, delegates are traveling across the Keystone State to support Hillary Clinton at the Democratic National Convention. This week we’re sharing the delegates’ remarkable stories of resilience and tenacity.
I became a US citizen in 2010. I was born in Hong Kong and my father worked in the airline industry. I grew up all over the world, and in some not-very-glamorous places, including Saudi Arabia and Iran before the revolution, and then Hong Kong.
My childhood dream was not to grow up to be a lawyer, which is what I am now. I wanted to grow up to be an American citizen. That was my ultimate dream because I was educated at international schools with an American curriculum.
I went to school with mostly American expatriates, but also with other Asian, European and South Asian expats in the Middle East. We were taught American history in English by American teachers. I fell in love with the American way of life, the American system of government. I thought it was so incredible.
I went to boarding school, college, and law school in the United States with the ultimate goal of becoming an American citizen. The United States is a rule of law system, and lawyers play an important role in guaranteeing that our system of rules and laws actually function for every person. That’s how I wanted to be an active participant in American society.
I became an American citizen after marrying my husband, whom I met in law school. The naturalization process and ceremony was so moving that I bawled like a baby.
I’ve always found it funny that most of my friends assume I’m American, because I learned English when I was six years old. They didn’t realize it was such a big deal for me to become an American citizen when I was 35 years old.
Was there a time when you first came to the United States for school that first made you think, “Wow, I really want to be an American citizen?”
I was envious of all of my American friends while living in the Middle East. While they went home during the summer and took advantage of all of the things the United States has to offer, I was growing up in Saudi Arabia, where the very freedoms that Americans enjoy don’t exist. Women can’t drive there. Women were not allowed to vote, they weren’t allowed to really be educated or work, all of these things that we kind of take for granted. I saw this first-hand and know that not everyone in Saudi Arabia enjoys those things.
I love America’s whole system of government, especially that the power resides in the people. Everyone works and we reap the rewards of our hard work. I made that realization when I was eight. When I finally got here, I already understood. I thought, “Yes! Finally!”
Tell me a little more about how you felt when you actually did become an American citizen.
In many ways, it was anti-climactic because I had already been living here. It hit home when I realized I could vote. I know it’s just one vote, but being able to vote in my first election meant taking that one last step. I’ve spent so much time getting other people to vote, talking to them, and trying to get them to go a certain way without having the ability to vote. It felt amazing that now I could step into that voting booth and actually pull the lever or push the button. It was pretty momentous.
There are little things like reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or singing the National Anthem and feeling like, “Oh, I’m a part of this.” So, it’s everything, honestly.
How do you think electing someone like Hillary Clinton will impact people who want to become citizens as well?
We can go on and on about what a Trump presidency would mean for immigrants. It’s not just that Hillary’s not Trump and isn’t racist, anti-immigrant, and all those horrible things. It’s that she’s very inclusive with her coalitions.
Immigrants and people of color don’t view our government from a position of privilege where we can think, “Let’s blow up the system and start over.” We’re trying to survive.
For people to say so cavalierly that our government is broken, our country sucks, and it used to be so much better is just unreal. I think, “Do you have any context for those statements? Do you realize how lucky we are to be an American in this day and age? To be an American in the past two hundred years?”
Hillary is a pragmatist. She understands our history and the pivotal role that immigrants play in building our country.
I saw Hamilton yesterday. It’s largely about celebrating a couple of immigrants, like Alexander Hamilton, right? Hillary and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s’ remarks both highlighted how Hillary’s campaign is celebrating the contributions of all Americans, especially immigrants.
Why did you become involved with politics?
I’ve become engaged in politics because I don’t take any of our rights for granted and I want to exercise my rights and be a part of improving our country. I’m a Democrat because our platform is very inclusive and it has room for people like me. The Democratic Party has made me feel at home.
I supported Hillary back in 2008. When she lost, I never thought I would have another chance to support her again. When I found out she was running again, I knew this would be the hardest I would ever work because I feel we were all given a second chance to elect a woman president for the first time. In previous elections my work was grassroots: going door to door, getting out the vote, and canvassing. My focus this election season has been on fundraising.
Can you tell me more about becoming a delegate?
I never even considered becoming a delegate because I just assumed that it was impossible to be selected. But then again, I’m involved at the local level, as a Radnor Township committee member, and have networks at the township level, county level and at the national level.
Because of that, the Delaware County chairman, David Landau, called me up and said, “Would you have any interest in being a delegate?”
I told him, “Of course, but I assumed that it was impossible to get selected.”
He said, “The Selection Committee would be very interested in someone like you, given everything that you’ve done.” So I applied.
As my District Captain, I helped all of us get our signatures, and I was a complete newbie with respect to everything. Now, I’m the whip for our little group for the Convention. It’s been a whirlwind, but I’m really excited.
What do you love most about Pennsylvania?
I love the blue-collar aspect of Philly. Here, people tell it like it is, but in a respectful way. Also, I like how Pennsylvania is diverse and is this perfect microcosm of the entire country with elements of every part of the country.
I’m proud we’re a swing state. In Pennsylvania, I feel like we actually can make a difference, and I’ve seen a lot of progress just in the ten years I’ve lived here. Things are trending from red to blue. It’s been fun.
