Speier was born in 1950 in San Francisco , and grew up in an apolitical family , the daughter of Nancy ( née Kanchelian ) and Manfred " Fred " Speier . Her mother was of Armenian descent and a survivor of the Armenian Genocide , while her father was an immigrant from Germany . Speier took Jacqueline as her confirmation name after Jackie Kennedy . She is a graduate of Mercy High School in Burlingame . She earned a B.A. degree from the University of California , Davis , and a J.D. degree from the University of California , Hastings College of the Law in 1976
Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
Jackie Speier