Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse gathered outside the US Capitol on Tuesday morning, demanding justice and the release of justice department files related to the late convicted sex offender. “It’s time that we put the political agendas and party of affiliations to the side. This is a human issue, this is about children,” said Haley Robson, one of the survivors.
The news conference came hours before the House of Representatives almost unanimously passed a bill to force the release of the justice department’s records on Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal charges of sex-trafficking minors. The measure secured bipartisan support, with Donald Trump reversing his previous resistance and urging Republican lawmakers to back the bill.
Wendy Avis, who said she met Epstein when she was 14, told the crowd: “We are exhausted from surviving the trauma and then surviving the politics that swirl around it. I am asking Congress, please pass the bill, please release the records, stop making survivors fight alone for the truth.” Democratic representative Ro Khanna, who co-led the push with Republican Thomas Massie, called the case “one of the most horrific and disgusting corruption scandals in our country’s history”. Massie urged the Senate not to “muck it up”, adding that any attempt to prevent disclosure would mean lawmakers are “not for the people”.
Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who joined the event, praised the survivors’ fight and referenced her recent clash with Trump, who withdrew his support for her on Friday. “He called me a ‘traitor’ for standing with these women and refusing to take my name off the discharge petition,” she said. Robson addressed Trump directly: “While I do understand that your position has changed on the Epstein files, and I’m grateful that you have pledged to sign this bill, I can’t help but be skeptical of what the agenda is. I am traumatized. I am not stupid.”
Another survivor, Jena-Lisa Jones, also appealed to the president: “I beg you, President Trump, please stop making this political, it is not about you. I voted for you, but your behavior on this issue has been a national embarrassment.” The Epstein case has plagued the Trump administration for months, particularly after the justice department announced over the summer that it would not release additional files despite campaign promises, sparking backlash.
