Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee dies at age 74

U.S. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee has passed away at the age of 74 after losing battle against cancer, her family confirmed Friday.

The renowned lawyer was born in New York. She was the daughter of a comic book artist and attended Yale University and the University of Virginia.

“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,” her family said in a statement.

“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 said.

In 2012 when Jackson Lee announced that she was a breast cancer survivor and was cancer free. However, Lee announced in June 2024 that she had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Jackson Lee will also be remembered as she was on the scene of every major disaster from Hurricane Ike to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jackson Lee is survived by her husband, Elwyn Lee, and her two children, Jason Lee, a graduate of Harvard University, and Erica Lee, a graduate of Duke University, who is also a Member of the Harris County School Board in Houston.

She is also survived by her two grandchildren, Ellison Bennett Carter, and Roy Lee Carter.