We were saddened to hear of the sudden death of U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, the Chair of the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, whose energy and intellect had advanced her to the highest levels of leadership in the Congress.

As the first African American woman to represent Ohio in Congress, Representative Tubbs Jones continued breaking barriers during her nearly ten years of service in Congress, becoming the first black woman to serve on the influential Ways and Means Committee and among the first to ascend to a committee chairmanship. Through it all, she was a policy innovator and a dedicated advocate for justice and equality for all people. She will be greatly missed.

We at the Joint Center send our heartfelt condolences to her son, Mervyn, her friends and other family members, and to the constituents in her Cleveland-area district, who have lost a champion in the cause of advancing their interests and in the struggle to expand hope and opportunity for all.

Rep. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones, D-Ohio