Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein united on the steps of the US Capitol on September 3 to advocate for the declassification of the Epstein files and announce that they had begun to create their own list of associates who took part in the abuse spearheaded by the multi-millionaire. This comes in the midst of mounting pressure from both the public and members of Congress for President Trump to release the currently classified Epstein files that allegedly contain the names of several of his co-conspirators, something the President promised to do on the campaign trail in 2024 but has avoided tenaciously since.
“It will be done by survivors, for survivors,” said Lisa Phillips, one of the nine victims to take part in the news conference organized by US lawmakers. Some have accused President Trump of refusing to release the classified documents because he may be included in them, given his past friendship with Epstein, which ended in the early 2000s. The President has adamantly denied this, saying it is a “hoax” fabricated by the Democratic Party to decrease public support for his administration.
It’s important to note that a letter Trump denies ever sending to Epstein, in which he allegedly drew the body of a nude woman with his signature in place of her cleavage, has since been discovered, calling the President’s credibility into question. President Trump has attempted to discredit the letter’s legitimacy, claiming his signature was forged and insisting that he never lied about any aspect of his relationship with the convicted sex trafficker.
Either way, the issue of the victims receiving justice has seemingly been dwarfed by the potential political implications of the files’ contents, something criticized by some survivors. “It’s really important for us all to remember that this is a crime. It’s a crime of sex trafficking. This isn’t a political issue,” stated Liz Stein, another victim of Epstein’s abuse who spoke at the news conference. She, unlike Ms. Phillips, opposes the creation of an independently compiled Epstein list because the fallout could put vulnerable survivors in the line of fire of the powerful people they would expose and distract them from the main goal of achieving justice. She explained how it was frustration over how the victims were being ignored that drove her to speak out, and that she wanted to “humanize survivors”.
Whether you follow this case’s progression out of political interest or a desire for justice, no time frame has been given for when this survivor’s list could be published, so the most anyone can do presently is continue to theorize and push for lawmakers to release the files themselves.
