On September 3, 2025, the steps of Capitol Hill became a stage for a raw, emotional reckoning as survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse gathered to demand long-overdue transparency from the U.S. government. Their message was clear and unwavering: the time for secrecy is over, and the American public deserves to know the full extent of Epstein’s criminal network.
It was a day marked by tears, courage, and a growing sense of bipartisan urgency. Survivors—some speaking publicly for the first time—stood shoulder to shoulder, sharing harrowing stories of how Epstein, aided by his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell, preyed on young girls and women for years. The group included Marina Lacerda, Anouska De Georgiou, Haley Robson, Jena-Lisa Jones, Courtney Wild, Liz Stein, and Lisa Phillips, among others. Each woman’s account underscored the devastating impact of Epstein’s abuse and the trauma that continues to haunt them.
“This is not a hoax. It’s not going to go away,” said Marina Lacerda, a central witness in Epstein’s 2019 indictment, according to ABC News. Her words set the tone for the rally, which was as much a plea for justice as it was a condemnation of inaction. Anouska De Georgiou, the first survivor to speak at the podium, declared, “The days of sweeping this under the rug are over. We the survivors say ‘no more.’ I’m no longer weak, I am no longer powerless and I’m no longer alone. And with your vote, neither will the next generation.”
Survivors detailed how their lives were irrevocably altered by Epstein and Maxwell. Liz Stein recounted meeting Epstein through Maxwell at age 21, describing it as “the sliding glass doors moment that changed the trajectory of my entire life.” Jena-Lisa Jones, who was just 14 when she first encountered Epstein, shared, “I had never been more scared in my life than I was that first time that he hurt me.” She added through tears, “I know that I was just a little kid but sometimes I still feel that it was my fault this happened.”
Lisa Phillips, who said she was brought to Epstein’s private island, announced that survivors themselves would begin compiling a confidential list of abusers since the government had failed to release any so-called “client list.” “We know the names. Many of us were abused by them,” Phillips stated. “Now together as survivors, we will confidentially compile the names we all know were regularly in the Epstein world, and it will be done by survivors, and for survivors, no one else is involved.”
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most prominent accusers, was not present—she died by suicide in April at age 41. Her family spoke on her behalf, remembering her relentless fight for justice and her efforts to expose a system that “allowed the wealthy, the connected and the powerful to exploit and abuse girls and young women without consequences.” Her brother, Sky Roberts, demanded, “The Epstein documents must be unsealed. Every name, every detail, no more secrets, no more protection for those who preyed on the vulnerable.”
The survivors’ rally was timed to coincide with the release of tens of thousands of pages of records by the House Oversight Committee on the evening of September 2, 2025. Yet, the release was met with disappointment and frustration. “After careful review, Oversight Democrats have found that 97% of the documents received from the Department of Justice were already public. There is no mention of any client list or anything that improves transparency or justice for victims,” Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., told CNN. The main contents included flight logs, court filings, and surveillance video from the night of Epstein’s death, but little in the way of new revelations.
In response, a bipartisan push led by Republican Rep. Thomas Massie and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna gained momentum. Their discharge petition—an effort to force a House vote to compel the Justice Department to release all unclassified Epstein files within 30 days—had, by September 3, garnered support from four Republicans: Massie, Nancy Mace, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Lauren Boebert. If all 212 Democrats sign, only two more Republicans are needed to reach the 218 signatures required.
“Today we stand with survivors, we stand against big money, we stand to protect America’s children. That is really what this is about,” Khanna said at the rally. Massie, standing among the survivors, challenged the official narrative: “The Washington establishment is asking the American public to believe something that is not believable. They’re asking you to believe that two individuals created hundreds of victims and they acted alone and that the DOJ has no idea of who else might have been involved, that nobody else did anything that rose to a criminal enterprise. The American people know that’s not true.”
Yet, House Republican leadership and the White House remained firmly opposed. Speaker Mike Johnson urged Republicans not to support the discharge petition, arguing that it “does not adequately protect the innocent victims, and that is a critical component.” Instead, Johnson touted the ongoing Oversight Committee investigation as the safer path, with committee investigators reviewing and redacting sensitive information before any public release.
President Donald Trump, when asked about the renewed calls for transparency, dismissed the matter as a “Democratic hoax that never ends.” Survivor Haley Robson, herself a registered Republican, responded directly: “Mr. President, Donald J. Trump, I am a registered Republican—not that that matters, because this is not political—however, I cordially invite you to the Capitol to meet me in person, so you can understand this is not a hoax. We are real human beings. This is real trauma.”
Other survivors echoed the call for action and accountability. Haley Robson condemned the weaponization of victims’ trauma by politicians and called out the government for two decades of inaction. “You may pull the wool over the sheep’s eyes, but we are the keys. We know who was involved. We know the game. We know the players, and we are sitting here for 20 years waiting for you to get up and do something. Well, guess what? Your time is up and now we’re doing it.”
Attorney Bradley Edwards, who has represented more than 200 Epstein survivors, emphasized the gravity of what remains hidden. “While we have seen the documents, you haven’t, and when you see the documents, you’re going to be appalled,” he told those gathered.
Jeffrey Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on federal charges of conspiracy and child sex trafficking. He died by suicide in custody a month later. Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted in 2021 by a federal jury on sex trafficking and other charges and is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s trafficking scheme.
As the survivors’ voices echoed across Capitol Hill, the message was unmistakable: this is not a partisan issue, but a national reckoning with power, accountability, and the duty to protect the vulnerable. The fight for full disclosure and justice continues, with survivors leading the charge and demanding that the truth—however uncomfortable—finally sees the light of day.
