Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, has now died at the age of 74 after a battle with cancer, her family said on Friday.
Jackson Lee stated in June that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was being treated.
The long-serving representative has been in the House since 1995, leaving a legacy of advocating for civil rights legislation.
Jackson Lee was the primary sponsor of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act and advocated for the Sentencing Reform Act of 2015 and the George Floyd Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act.
The Texas Democrat introduced legislation to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which President Biden signed in 2022.
Jackson Lee was born in Queens, NY. She graduated from Yale University and the University of Virginia Law School and worked as a private practice lawyer and staff counsel for the House Select Committee on Assassinations.
She later worked in Houston’s government as a City Council member and municipal judge before being elected to Congress, where she served on the Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Budget committees.
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