Growing up during the Cultural Revolution in China, politics was something I learned to fear, not embrace. I understood politics as a matter of survival, not a calling.

When I arrived in the United States in 1989 as an international student, I came in search of opportunity, freedom, and a different future. Running for public office was the furthest thing from my mind. Yet nearly three decades later, I became the first Chinese immigrant elected to the Maryland General Assembly and the first American state legislator to have grown up in modern China.

My journey illustrates something I have come to believe deeply: Democracy favors those who participate, and belonging is something we can choose by stepping up.

For women, especially immigrant women and women of color, stepping into politics often means overcoming barriers that go well beyond fundraising and campaigning. We must contend with cultural expectations, stereotypes about leadership, limited political networks, and sometimes outright hostility.

When I ran for office in 2018, I faced a vicious disinformation campaign on WeChat, a Chinese-language social media. My identity as a Chinese immigrant, which I considered an asset in representing an increasingly diverse community, became a political vulnerability. That experience taught me how easily misinformation can exploit cultural divisions and how important it is for women to define our own narratives rather than allow others to define us.

But women also bring perspectives and experiences that our democracy cannot afford to exclude. Our lived experiences shape the questions we ask, the problems we recognize, and the solutions we pursue. Representation is not simply about who occupies a seat in government. It is about whose experiences inform public policy and whose voices help shape our collective future.

As a state legislator, I have focused on economic opportunity, stronger communities, and a more inclusive democracy because of my lived experiences in two vastly different political systems. I have also championed opening our primary elections to unaffiliated voters because participation should not require joining a political party.

In my memoir, Elected American: From Red China to Blue Maryland, I tell the story of my unlikely journey from political repression to political representation. One of its central messages is that immigrants do not have to wait a generation to fully integrate into American society, including participating in our democracy.

The same principle applies to women in politics. We do not need to wait until we feel perfectly prepared, speak flawless English, until someone invites us, or until the political environment becomes more welcoming.

We belong in the rooms where decisions are made—not because someone makes space for us, but because we have something important to contribute.

And democracy needs us.

Register now for WPI’s “Women on Wednesdays” on November 18th at 6pm ET: American University Alumna Del. Lily Qi (D-MD), KSB ’01, will discuss her new book, Elected American: From Red China to Blue Maryland, which reflects on her journey from growing up during China’s Cultural Revolution to eventually becoming a U.S. state legislator, with WeLead Alumna Tonia Bui ‘11, founder and managing director of PWP Strategies and Chair of the Asian American Political Alliance Action. Details and registration here. Order the book here