Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), who represented her constituents for more than 30 years, has died after a battle with cancer, her family announced on July 19. She was 74.
Ms. Lee was first elected to her Houston seat in 1994 and she served the 18th Congressional District of Texas.
In June, the congresswoman revealed that she had pancreatic cancer.
“Today, with incredible grief for our loss yet deep gratitude for the life she shared with us, we announce the passing of United States Representative Sheila Jackson Lee of the 18th Congressional District of Texas,” the Democratic congresswoman’s family said in a statement.
Ms. Lee was born in Queens, New York, on Jan. 12, 1950. She was one of two children.
Her mother, Ivalita Bennett Jackson, was a nurse who once cared for premature infants at Salvation Army Booth Memorial Hospital in the 1940s. Her father, Ezra Clyde Jackson, once worked as an artist for Marvel during World War II.
After earning her bachelor’s degree from Yale University with honors and a law degree from the University of Virginia Law School, Ms. Lee moved with her husband to Texas, where she began her political career as a municipal judge and a member of the Houston City Council.
Her family described her as a fierce champion of the people.
“A local, national, and international humanitarian, she was acknowledged worldwide for her courageous fights for racial justice, criminal justice, and human rights, with a special emphasis on women and children,” the statement by Ms. Lee’s family said.
President Joe Biden also issued a statement on July 20 calling the congresswoman “a great American.”
“I had the honor of working with her during her nearly 30 years in Congress. No matter the issue—from delivering racial justice to building an economy for working people—she was unrelenting in her leadership,” he said.
“Always fearless, she spoke truth to power and represented the power of the people of her district in Houston with dignity and grace.”
The congresswoman was a senior member of three House committees: the Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Budget committees. She was a founding member and chair of the Congressional Pakistan Caucus and the Congressional Children’s Caucus. She also chaired the Congressional Black Caucus Energy Braintrust and co-chaired the Justice Reform Task Force.
In 2021, the congresswoman led legislation establishing June 19 as a federal holiday known as Juneteenth to memorialize the end of slavery in the United States. In 2022, she championed a bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act after it expired in 2019, providing domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking protections for women and expanding it.
Ms. Lee was also vocal in her opposition to human rights abuses by the Chinese Communist Party, having spoken publicly at rallies held annually around July 20 commemorating the date the regime launched its persecution of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice whose adherents live by the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance.
“We must stop the crimes against decent and loving people,” she said in one rousing public speech.
The congresswoman’s family said the people she impacted the most were her family.
“She will be dearly missed, but her legacy will continue to inspire all who believe in freedom, justice, and democracy. God bless you, Congresswoman, and God bless the United States of America,” their statement concluded.
Funeral arrangements for the congresswoman have yet to be made.
