The Tragic Death Of Jamie Foxx's Sister

Entertainer Jamie Foxx has done it all. According to Biography, he's a singer, an Academy Award-winning actor, and a comedian. Foxx is also a Down Syndrome advocate thanks to his sister DeOndra Dixon, who was born with the condition (via the Global Down Syndrome Foundation). Dixon, however, never let Down Syndrome impede her life. Per Distractify, she would often walk the red carpet with her brother and star in his music videos. Dixon told the Global Down Syndrome Foundation that her family made her feel like she could "touch the sky."

In addition, she was a Special Olympics athlete, dancer, and an "advocate for people with intellectual disabilitiesā€ (per theĀ Special Olympics). In 2011, Dixon won the Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Award. Foxx said his sister taught him "how to live" and described her as "the life of the party." As for Dixon, she felt that her brother had given her a "chance to do some special things." The siblings openly doted on each other and Foxx felt like there was "nothing" Dixon couldn't do.

DeOndra Dixon's cause of death is unknown

In October 2020, Jamie Foxx announced on Instagram that his sister, DeOndra Dixon, had died (via USA Today). Distractify writes that the family chose to not make her cause of death public. However, Foxx stated that they were "shattered" and that her death "left a hole" in his heart. In an interview with Extra, he described the death as "abrupt" but did not divulge any other details. He also reminisced on how Dixon would dance and "light the world on fire." With the news of her death, the Global Down Syndrome Foundation wrote that they had lost "a beacon of hope."

People reports that on World Down Syndrome Day in March 2021, Foxx posted a tribute to Dixon on his Instagram. He referred to her as "my angel" and said he could still hear her around his home. Though she was only 36 at the time of her death, Dixon accomplished more than the average person. Besides being a public speaker and advocate, she danced at the Grammys (via the Global Down Syndrome Foundation) and participated in the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show every year. After Dixon's death, the Foxx family started the DeOndra Dixon Down Syndrome Research Fund in her honor.