Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat, has died at 74 after a battle with pancreatic cancer, her family announced.

Jackson Lee, who represented Texas’s 18th Congressional District since 1995, was known for her advocacy for racial justice, criminal justice reform, and human rights, with a focus on women and children.

She was a prominent sponsor of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act and supported significant legislation like the Sentencing Reform Act of 2015 and the George Floyd Law Enforcement Trust and Integrity Act.

The Texas Democrat introduced legislation for the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which President Joe Biden signed in 2022, NBC News has reported.

Sheila Jackson Lee was born in Queens, New York, and graduated from Yale University and the University of Virginia Law School.

She worked as a lawyer in private practice and as staff counsel for the House Select Committee on Assassinations.

Jackson Lee then served in Houston’s government as a City Council member and municipal judge before being elected to Congress, where she was a member of the Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Budget committees.

Written by B.C. Begley