HOUSTON – Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee’s death over the weekend came as a shock to many, just a few months after she announced her recent pancreatic cancer diagnosis.
Now, we reflect on her life as an honorary Houstonian and as an overall community servant.
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Jackson Lee had undoubtedly worked hard in American politics for the past four decades, dedicating most of her life to government work.
Born in Queens, New York as Sheila Jackson, the congresswoman grew up in the borough and graduated from Jamaica High School in 1968.
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According to her biography on Congress.gov, SJL pursued her higher education by earning a B.A. in Political Science from Yale University in 1972. She accomplished this with honors in the first graduating class including females.
She also earned a Juris Doctorate from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1975.
Afterwards, SJL worked as a lawyer and interestingly served on the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations from 1977-1978 where members were charged with conducting a ‘full and complete investigation of the circumstances surrounding the deaths of President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’
SJL then moved to Houston with her family shortly after and reportedly made a few attempts at being a judge.
Then-mayor of Houston Kathy Whitmire appointed SJL as an associate municipal judge where she served from 1987-1990 and later appointed her as the chair of the newly created Human Relations Committee.
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Additionally, Whitmire named SJL as an at-large member of the Houston City Council, making her one of the first African American female At-Large members. She served in this role from 1990-1994. After that, Jackson Lee was sworn into her seat in Congress in 1995.
Since then, she has been re-elected 14 times and most recently won the Democratic nomination in March.
Her recent victory came just months after losing a bid to become Houston’s mayor against Kathy Whitmire’s former brother-in-law-, John Whitmire.
At the time she ran, SJL said that she had sought to be the first Black female mayor of the nation’s fourth-largest city.
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Her district included downtown Houston and some of the city’s historically Black neighborhoods.
During her tenure in Congress, Jackson Lee served as a member and chairperson on the following boards and caucuses:
- Congressional Human Rights Caucus
- Congressional Caucus on Women’s Issues
- Congressional Black Caucus
- Aeronautics and Space Caucus
- House Democratic Caucus Task Forces on Hunger
- Welfare Reform Bill
- House Internet Caucus
- Economic Renewal
- Affirmative Action
- Travel and Tourism
Regarding her personal life, in 1973, Jackson Lee married Dr. Elwyn Lee, a Yale Graduate and an Administrator at the University of Houston.
During her busy life, she also managed to add being a mother to her extensive list of duties. SJL has 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, Texas.
SJL was also the proud grandmother of two twin grandbabies: Granddaughter Ellison Bennett Carter and Grandson Roy Lee Carter, III.
SJL died at the age of 74 on July 20, 2024.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) July 20, 2024
The Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, the National Archives, the Texas Tribune, and the Associated Press contributed to the above article.