[0:01]And we knew that needed to change.
[0:04]So after listening to Liz, we knew we needed to create a space and send a clear message.
[0:11]It is time to listen to the voices of survivors.
[0:15]So here we are.
[0:19]What Liz reminds us is that courage is contagious.
[0:24]You will not see one woman walk up here alone.
[0:28]She will walk up in solidarity with her survivor sisters.
[0:32]And that is deliberate, because this movement is all about solidarity.
[0:38]When one person steps forward, we all have the courage to step forward.
[0:44]Alright, let's do it. Liz, come on up here.
[0:48]Liz is joined this morning with four of her sisters.
[0:53]Four women in our World Wee Survivor Training Fellowship.
[0:57]Please welcome Gigi, LJ, Jessica and Terry.
[1:02]There has never been a more urgent moment.
[1:06]Thank you.
[1:07]Good morning. My name is Gabrielle Prieto and it is an honor to welcome you here today.
[1:30]To every survivor present and to every ally standing with us.
[1:35]Your courage, your solidarity and your presence are powerful.
[1:39]We also thank our partners World Weed and the Coalition for uniting this moment of hope and determination.
[1:46]As we gather on the Capitol Hill today because survivors of Epstein-Maxwell and countless others have said,
[1:53]we want to be seen, we want to be heard and we want to be safe.
[1:59]This is not about politics.
[2:01]This is about survivor lead, a sister in this movement and a voice of resilience.
[2:08]She stands not only for herself but for the countless others who have been silenced.
[2:15]Please join me in welcoming Liz Stein to the podium. Thank you.
[2:20]Good morning everyone.
[2:28]Welcome.
[2:31]Looking out into this crowd, it's so hard to believe that this is all happening.
[2:37]It was born out of frustration sitting around a kitchen table.
[2:41]Look at us here today.
[2:44]I'm really blown away with all of this support.
[2:47]There is definitely power in numbers.
[2:50]Today we're here to celebrate the great strength of my survivor sisters who are here in Washington
[2:57]and to all of you who came out today to stand with survivors.
[3:01]My name is Liz Stein.
[3:06]I am a speaker, writer, educator and activist in the anti-trafficking movement.
[3:14]I am a World Without Exploitation Stand Fellow and I am also a survivor of Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein.
[3:23]I met Ghislaine when I was a senior in college.
[3:27]I was just 21 years old.
[3:30]Maxwell introduced me to Jeffrey Epstein later on that day.
[3:35]That evening was the sliding glass doors moment that changed the trajectory of my entire life.
[3:43]I was once bright, fun, outgoing and kind.
[3:48]I loved people and people genuinely enjoyed being around me.
[3:53]But after meeting Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, it felt like someone shut off the lights to my soul.
[4:05]Instead of pursuing my dream of going to law school after graduation,
[4:11]overcoming the terror and the trauma that was inflicted on me by these sex traffickers,
[4:19]overcoming that became my decades-long, full-time career.
[4:26]As survivors, we're initiated into a sisterhood.
[4:33]We are in a sorority that none of us asked to join.
[4:37]But we all stand here today strong, stronger together because our collective voice is powerful.
[4:45]We stand together also to honor the beautiful souls who lost their lives in the pursuit of getting justice
[4:55]for Maxwell and Epstein's crimes.
[5:05]This is not a partisan issue.
[5:08]This is a crime, the crime of sex trafficking and the criminals must be held accountable.
[5:15]Disbelieving survivors creates a culture of silence.
[5:20]There is strength in numbers and our courage is contagious.
[5:27]I want to humanize sex trafficking survivors for you all just for one moment.
[5:33]We are not others.
[5:35]We are your sisters, your friends, your colleagues.
[5:40]We are in your community.
[5:43]Think about the women that you love and then think about them being the victim of sexual assault.
[5:52]It's uncomfortable and it's hard to think about.
[5:56]Could you stand for their abuse?
[5:59]I hope not.
[6:01]This is a crime that by our Justice Department's own admission has a thousand victims.
[6:08]A thousand victims.
[6:10]Do you know a thousand people?
[6:12]Think of the enormity of that.
[6:14]Could you be okay with a crime happening in your community to a thousand girls and young women
[6:23]and not holding the perpetrators accountable?
[6:26]I think not.
[6:31]The government's mishandling of this case has silenced our truth from the start.
[6:36]Nevertheless, beginning with Maria Farmer in 1996,
[6:40]the survivors of this crime have been relentless in speaking out and seeking justice,
[6:45]oftentimes at great risk to our own safety and well-being.
[6:50]It is the voices of survivors.
[6:54]I'm going to repeat that because it bears repeating.
[6:57]It is the voices of survivors of these crimes that are important.
[7:02]So we are here together.
[7:04]We are here together to stand united.
[7:12]And I want to uplift the words of someone who can't be with us today,
[7:18]but who has inspired us all in different ways.
[7:25]So to quote the late Virginia Dufray,
[7:29]mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers need to show that the battle lines are drawn
[7:37]and stand together to fight for the future of victims.
[7:42]Is protesting the answer?
[7:44]I don't know, but we've got to start somewhere.
[7:47]And we are here today to start somewhere.
[7:51]So if you are watching us from home,
[7:54]if you're in the audience and you believe that you should stand with survivors,
[7:59]show us your support.
[8:01]Hashtag stand with survivors.
[8:07]Thank you.
[8:24]All right, we're going to just keep it moving.
[8:26]I'd now love to welcome to the stage Sigrid McCauley,
[8:30]Annie Farmer, Virginia's incredible family, and Teresa Helm.
[8:41]Good morning.
[8:59]We come together in the nation's capital at this watershed moment for survivors.
[9:05]They're demanding justice.
[9:08]They're demanding accountability.
[9:10]And they're demanding action.
[9:13]For far too long, Maxwell and Epstein committed crimes
[9:18]throughout our country and our world.
[9:21]And it's time to hold those that facilitated those crimes accountable.
[9:26]We've heard a lot of words for many, many, far too many years.
[9:32]It's time, finally, for action.
[9:36]Earlier this year, many of you know that we lost a dear friend
[9:40]and a client of mine, Virginia Joufray.
[9:43]Her wonderful family is with us here today.
[9:47]I can tell you that she would have loved this moment.
[9:51]It would have been so special for her to see all of you here today.
[9:55]And I know she's with us.
[9:58]And what she would want you to hear today is,
[10:01]stay strong and keep fighting for justice.
[10:05]Thank you.
[10:11]I'm going to take a moment to read from one of our fellow survivors who,
[10:14]thank you, was too afraid to come here today.
[10:18]Her name is Juliette Bryant, and she asked me to read this letter to you all.
[10:23]I wish I could be here today.
[10:25]Unfortunately, I'm too afraid to travel to America after everything that has happened.
[10:31]I am, however, here in spirit, like many other survivors,
[10:35]such as Virginia Joufray and Carolyn Adriano.
[10:40]I want to speak out for all victims of abuse,
[10:43]especially those who can no longer speak, those both alive and dead.
[10:48]For years, the truth about Epstein has been covered up.
[10:52]They say there's no Epstein list.
[10:54]It's time to speak to us.
[10:56]It's time to dig deeper, do the financial research.
[11:00]It's clear that for years there has been a big cover-up.
[11:04]We have all been lied to.
[11:06]It's especially difficult for victims of Epstein to move on
[11:11]when it's thrown in their face daily through the media without any closure.
[11:16]The public has now become the victims of this as well.
[11:19]We have all been badly hurt by this.
[11:22]It's time for the truth to come out.
[11:24]It's time to stand up for victims of all crimes.
[11:28]It's time for the perpetrators to be held accountable.
[11:32]Thank you for being here and for standing by myself and other victims.
[11:36]Together we will make change.
[11:38]There is strength in numbers, and we will do it together.
[11:42]From Juliette Bryant.
[11:48]And now I'd like to introduce Annie Farmer.
[11:54]Good morning, everyone.
[11:56]Thank you so much for being here today.
[11:58]Your support means more than you know.
[12:00]My sister, Maria Farmer, was not able to attend,
[12:03]and so I will read her remarks for her.
[12:06]Due to the debilitating effects of the last few years of cancer treatment,
[12:10]I am unable to be here today.
[12:12]My sister, Annie Farmer, will speak for me.
[12:15]She is a primary reason that I reported Epstein, Maxwell,
[12:19]and others to the FBI in 1996 after they assaulted us in two different locations
[12:26]and held me captive at Wexner's estate,
[12:29]while Maxwell also stole photos that were my private art studies
[12:36]and twisted them into child sexual abuse materials,
[12:39]harming my sisters and myself.
[12:44]In 2006, the FBI demanded my testimony for a federal trial
[12:49]promising justice, but failed again.
[12:53]For 30 years, I've fought not only sex traffickers,
[12:56]but a federal government that has enabled them,
[12:59]while that same government fully ignored teen safety
[13:03]and my many FOIA report requests.
[13:06]After three decades of failure, I am suing them for answers.
[13:18]Virginia Dufray's heroism, speaking her truth, her humility,
[13:22]her bravery and love, ended my 14 years of fear and silence.
[13:27]She is the heart of this fight.
[13:29]I want to make a moment of silence for her.
[13:38]I would just like to say, speaking for myself now,
[13:42]how very much it means to see this show of solidarity today.
[13:47]After feeling so isolated and alone for so many years with this fight,
[13:52]it's incredible to see all of you standing here
[13:55]and to feel the support coming from elsewhere as well.
[14:00]Since I've come out publicly in this case,
[14:03]I've received so many notes and messages from people
[14:06]who have been impacted by this story
[14:11]because of how much they relate to the struggles involved in this story.
[14:15]Unfortunately, that's because so many people are affected by these crimes.
[14:19]We have a huge widespread issue with child sexual abuse,
[14:23]with sexual violence against women,
[14:25]with abuse of power in all forms that leads to all forms of trafficking.
[14:30]I truly believe when you're facing problems at this scale,
[14:35]it requires this type of force of coming together,
[14:39]creative solutions around not just the punishment of these very guilty perpetrators,
[14:46]but also education so people know the signs and understand the signs
[14:52]and can recognize the things that I didn't recognize
[14:55]when I was being lured into this world.
[14:59]I'm so grateful for organizations that do this work.
[15:06]Thank you for World Without Exploitation, for hosting this,
[15:10]and for doing the very, very important work of education.
[15:13]I just want to thank all of you.
[15:16]I think we all have a role to play in coming together
[15:20]to change these very challenging situations that we face
[15:24]and to solve these problems. Thank you.
[15:42]Hello, everyone. My name is Skye Roberts,
[15:47]and I'm here today with my wife Amanda Roberts and my brother Daniel Wilson.
[15:53]We are proud and heartbroken to be standing here before you
[16:07]as the family of Virginia Roberts Dufray.
[16:16]Virginia is not only our sister, she is a warrior, a survivor.
[16:22]And even though she is no longer with us in body,
[16:26]her voice, her courage, and her fight live on through every one of us here today.
[16:33]We want to start by saying thank you to the survivors
[16:37]who show unimaginable strength simply by standing here,
[16:41]to World Without Exploitation, whose tireless work helps turn pain into purpose,
[16:47]and to every person who refuses to stay silent
[16:50]even when the world makes it easier to look away.
[16:53]It is an honor, a true privilege to stand with you,
[16:57]to support you, and to help keep Virginia's voice alive.
[17:01]Virginia fought for truth.
[17:08]She fought to expose a system that allowed the wealthy, the connected,
[17:12]and the powerful to exploit and abuse girls and young women without consequence.
[17:18]She fought for every survivor who was silenced, doubted, or discarded.
[17:23]And she never backed down, even when the world tried to break her.
[17:28]Today we rally not only in her memory, but in solidarity with every survivor.
[17:37]We are here to say we see you, we believe you,
[17:41]and we will not stop until justice is served.
[17:49]Because justice is not selective.
[17:52]It does not and must not bend to money, influence, or titles.
[17:57]We are here because every survivor deserves more than a headline.
[18:01]They deserve more than a single conviction.
[18:03]They deserve the full weight of the law behind them.
[18:07]Our demands are clear.
[18:10]Elaine Maxwell must remain in a maximum security prison for the rest of her life.
[18:18]No leniency, no deals, no special treatment.
[18:24]The Epstein documents must be unsealed.
[18:27]Every name, every detail, no more secrets,
[18:32]no more protection for those who preyed on the vulnerable.
[18:36]And finally, we demand full accountability from every enabler,
[18:41]every accomplice, every person in power who turned a blind eye.
[18:45]The justice system was not designed to serve the powerful.
[18:49]It was meant to protect the people.
[18:51]And it's time it started doing just that.
[18:56]This movement isn't just about the past.
[18:59]It's about reshaping the future,
[19:01]a future where survivors are not shamed, silenced, or ignored,
[19:05]but heard, honored, and empowered.
[19:08]Thank you.
[19:10]Thank you for standing here, for fighting alongside us,
[19:13]and for refusing to let this story end with injustice.
[19:17]Virginia's voice echoes in every one of us.
[19:20]Let's make sure the world keeps listening.
[19:25]I want to end it with a quote from Virginia,
[19:28]and I'm going to hand it over to my wife, Amanda.
[19:33]This is a quote from Virginia's journals.
[19:37]I look forward to the days when money and power
[19:43]does not stop the truth from coming out,
[19:46]and the righteous prevail.
[19:48]Thank you.
[20:08]Well, good morning.
[20:09]I am Teresa J. Helm.
[20:11]I am a survivor of Gailen Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein,
[20:16]and I work with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation
[20:20]here in Washington, D.C., very proudly.
[20:25]And today I stand here as an expert of my lived experience
[20:30]at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirator,
[20:34]Gailen Maxwell, or, as I first knew her as, Ms. Maxwell.
[20:42]I was systematically recruited, trafficked
[20:47]across this great nation, groomed, and assaulted.
[20:54]Gailen, it was your butler that greeted me
[20:57]at the front door of your beautiful home,
[21:01]and it was your calm, manipulative,
[21:05]and fraudulent demeanor that cultivated my trust.
[21:11]That coercive system that you have mastered
[21:16]was entirely end-game oriented,
[21:21]and that end-game was to feed the perversion
[21:25]of you and Jeffrey through sexual violence.
[21:31]It was you who sent me off to the home of a monster,
[21:35]knowing what was waiting for me.
[21:39]Gailen Maxwell, you are the system,
[21:44]and now you are but a part of another system,
[22:13]one that you've earned through your very own choices and actions.
[22:23]A prison system where you deserve to live
[22:28]for every moment of your 20-year sentence,
[22:34]and that alone is not enough.
[22:37]Systems require support.
[22:40]There are others that are complicit,
[22:43]that have caused harm to women and children,
[22:47]that have benefited from that harm,
[22:50]and as it stands in this moment,
[22:53]have enjoyed impunity and dodged accountability.
[23:00]We've heard her voice, now hear ours, loud and clear.
[23:06]Systems built with a root of corruption, violence, and deceit
[23:12]always crumble.
[23:14]That time is coming.
[23:17]Your pseudo-power has diminished.
[23:21]It is our time and the power of justice, of common sense.
[23:27]It's our system now.
[23:31]This is a call to action.
[23:33]Now is the time to sift through
[23:37]and get rid of the perpetrators and bad actors.
[23:42]This eminent shift is how our country operates.
[23:47]It's how we will secure this nation's future,
[23:52]and the world is watching.
[23:56]And before I step away, I wanted to add one quick thought.
[24:00]Let's stop calling it an Epstein client list,
[24:07]and let's call it what it actually is.
[24:10]It's Epstein's Sex Buyer List.
[24:16]Thank you.
[24:23]I'm so proud and honored to be here today.
[24:26]My name is Lisa Phillips,
[24:28]and I'm the host of an award-winning podcast,
[24:30]from now on, where I interview survivors.
[24:34]In the year 2000, I was taken to Jeffrey Epstein's island
[24:38]while on a photo shoot in the Caribbean.
[24:41]Who I saw and what I experienced there
[24:44]would change me forever.
[24:46]For months, I had to avoid Jeffrey,
[24:55]but he told me that if I wanted to succeed as a Ford model,
[24:59]he could make it happen.
[25:01]And he was right.
[25:02]He introduced me to Katie Ford
[25:05]and many others in the entertainment business.
[25:08]His grip on the modeling business was undeniable.
[25:12]Not just the Ford family, but Victoria's Secret,
[25:15]Faith Cates, Jean-Luc Brunel, Victoria's Secret.
[25:20]Epstein's reach went to the very top of fashion.
[25:24]He could make a model's career.
[25:26]What I didn't realize then was that once he lured someone like me in,
[25:31]he could also destroy my career
[25:33]if I did not do what he wanted me to do.
[25:36]In New York City, countless young women were abused by him.
[25:40]Everyone in the industry knew, yet he was too powerful to stop.
[25:46]He had friends in all over entertainment and arts,
[25:51]and his value to those friends made him untouchable.
[25:55]But I ask you why.
[25:57]Who was he to our government
[26:00]that he was allowed to operate openly for decades?
[26:05]Why was he allowed to sponsor visas for young models
[26:08]using their immigration status as leverage to abuse them and silence them?
[26:14]Epstein was not just a serial predator.
[26:17]He was an international human trafficker.
[26:22]And many around him knew this, many participated, and many profited.
[26:27]And yet he was protected.
[26:30]I know what it's like to be trafficked to others.
[26:33]I know that the files contain the names of powerful men
[26:37]who have been shielded because of their fame or their fortune.
[26:41]So I stand here today not just for myself,
[26:44]but for every woman who has been silenced, exploited, and dismissed.
[26:48]Thank you.
[26:55]And we are not asking for pity.
[26:57]We are demanding accountability.
[26:59]Congress must choose.
[27:06]Will you continue to protect predators,
[27:08]or will you finally protect survivors?
[27:12]Transparency is justice.
[27:14]Release the files.
[27:15]End the secrecy.
[27:17]And stand with us in declaring that no one,
[27:19]no billionaires, no politicians, not world leaders, is above the law.
[27:31]And let me announce now,
[27:33]several of us Epstein survivors have been discussing creating our own list of names.
[27:38]Yes, we know the names.
[27:45]Many of us were abused by them.
[27:51]Now, together as survivors, we will confidentially compile the names.
[27:55]We all know we're regularly in the Epstein world.
[27:59]And it will be done by survivors and for survivors.
[28:03]No one else is involved.
[28:07]Stay tuned for more details on that.
[28:12]Because history is watching, and so are the women who will come after us.
[28:17]Thank you.
[28:18]If that's not bravery, I do not know what is.
[28:34]Okay.
[28:36]We're bringing up another group of women.
[28:39]Ashley, Danny, Jess, Haley, and Wendy.
[28:42]Come on up.
[28:58]Okay.
[28:59]Well, this will be fun.
[29:03]So my name is Ashley Rubright,
[29:05]and I am a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein and Galeen Maxwell.
[29:10]Some things I want to say.
[29:13]To any survivors out there who feel like they don't matter,
[29:17]it doesn't matter if you went once or countless times.
[29:21]We were groomed.
[29:23]We were manipulated, and we were taken advantage of.
[29:27]For decades, survivors have been suffocated by speculation.
[29:31]We've been mocked.
[29:32]We've been doubted.
[29:33]We've been re-traumatized.
[29:35]While those responsible hide in secrecy.
[29:40]Why don't we deserve justice?
[29:43]This is not partisan.
[29:45]However, this is very political,
[29:48]as the only path to justice is through our political system.
[29:53]And this is about justice.
[29:55]This is about accountability.
[29:57]This is about protecting the innocence of our children
[30:00]and honoring the dignity of survivors.
[30:03]Everywhere we turn, the story follows us.
[30:06]It's in headlines, jokes, music, grocery store checkout lines,
[30:12]random conversations that you hear people having in restaurants.
[30:16]For more than 20 years, we've been unable to escape it.
[30:19]And every time new promises are made,
[30:22]our sparks of hope are lit, only to be extinguished again.
[30:27]We are tired.
[30:30]However, we are not going away.
[30:37]We will not stop or give up.
[30:41]And we will be on the front lines of this battle.
[30:44]We are no longer scared.
[30:47]And let's be clear.
[30:49]There were so many enabling adults.
[30:54]Those enablers actively turned a blind eye,
[30:58]and they are the greatest danger.
[31:01]And you know who you are, as do we.
[31:08]You allowed us to be abused for a fat check and a cushy life,
[31:12]which you still have.
[31:14]And to those in power, hear us clearly.
[31:18]Do your job.
[31:20]Release what needs to be released.
[31:23]And hold those responsible accountable.
[31:30]Survivors deserve peace.
[31:39]Survivors deserve truth.
[31:41]Survivors deserve justice.
[31:44]And to my fellow survivors, your voice matters,
[31:48]your story matters, and you matter.
[31:52]Together we are louder than the silence.
[31:55]Together we will not stop until justice is done.
[32:12]Good afternoon.
[32:14]Wow, a lot of people showed out for us today.
[32:17]I wasn't expecting all this support.
[32:21]What an incredible feeling.
[32:23]Thank you, everybody, for being here.
[32:25]I'm going to try to make this as quick
[32:27]so the other girls don't have to be crunching for time.
[32:31]My name is Haley Robson.
[32:33]I came out in 2019 on the documentary Filthy Rich.
[32:37]I have been very focused on bringing more awareness
[32:40]to all of the survivors.
[32:42]I am so proud to stand with them.
[32:44]I am so proud to be up here to support them
[32:46]because they deserve all the love and support.
[32:48]And I just want to say to the women who chose this moment
[32:52]to come out for the very first time about your abuse,
[32:55]I cannot think of a more important, greater purpose in life
[33:00]than to stand in solidarity when time is against us,
[33:03]when the politicians have made us an enemy,
[33:07]when the world is watching and everybody is hoping
[33:09]for some type of result.
[33:11]Thank you for choosing this moment for the first time
[33:15]to be so brave to come out and stand in solidarity.
[33:21]I prayed for a moment, I prayed for this moment
[33:25]where God would fill us with reinforcements.
[33:29]I want to acknowledge all the women, unfortunately,
[33:32]that couldn't be here today
[33:34]because I think that is the only list of real great importance
[33:38]and we should never forget the voices that were not only silenced
[33:41]but that are not here today
[33:43]and we should never forget the sacrifices that they made.
[33:46]So today I would like to take a moment
[33:50]for Virginia, Sky, Danielle, and Carolyn.
[33:54]Their voices were just as powerful
[33:56]and they were silenced just as much.
[33:59]And for some reason, I can feel their spirit,
[34:02]especially Virginia's today.
[34:04]She would be so proud and she would be so beside herself
[34:08]to see this one moment we have all came together to unite.
[34:11]And for our government and for the politicians
[34:15]who have taken our trauma and have weaponized it against us,
[34:18]making it unbearable, making it unlivable,
[34:21]making it hard to move on in a life that we wish to live
[34:25]in happiness and joy and peace and injustice
[34:27]that can only come from within at this point.
[34:30]And we have gotten to this point.
[34:32]Shame on you.
[34:34]Shame on you for using our trauma to weaponize this moment.
[34:39]We are not going to be fooled by your trickery.
[34:42]We are not going to be fooled by the lies,
[34:45]by the conspiracy theories.
[34:47]We are the keys to this situation.
[34:50]We have the truth.
[34:52]And the FBI knows the truth.
[34:54]The government knows the truth.
[34:56]You may pull the wool over the sheep's eyes,
[35:00]but we are the keys.
[35:01]We know who was involved.
[35:03]We know the game.
[35:04]We know the players.
[35:06]And we are sitting here for 20 years waiting
[35:10]for you to get up and do something.
[35:12]Well, guess what?
[35:14]Your time is up and now we're doing it.
[35:16]How do you follow that?
[35:28]Hello, everybody.
[35:29]My name is Wendy Passante,
[35:31]and I was abused by Jeffrey Epstein when I was 14 years old.
[35:36]I'm not here to relive what happened.
[35:39]I'm here to be counted and to make sure others are counted, too.
[35:43]I once believed my silence was strength.
[35:47]Hold it together.
[35:49]Don't draw attention.
[35:51]Today, I know that strength sounds like my voice.
[35:54]It sounds like everybody's voice is up here.
[35:59]Silence only protects predators, not children.
[36:04]People ask, what about the victims?
[36:07]We're here.
[36:08]We're here today.
[36:10]And there's more of us.
[36:12]I stand with many who are still finding their words.
[36:16]I live in a world where being understood is a struggle,
[36:19]where people in power would rather sweep us under the rug
[36:22]in hopes that we'll go away.
[36:25]We won't.
[36:29]Being a survivor is not a headline.
[36:31]It's our life.
[36:33]We have to live it.
[36:34]It's panic in a grocery store.
[36:36]It's smiling at work while my hands tremble.
[36:39]It's waking up at 3 a.m. with my heart racing and not knowing why.
[36:44]It's living with PTSD, anxiety, and depression,
[36:47]where nervous systems on guard at all times,
[36:49]even in the safest room around the safest people.
[36:55]Healing isn't tidy.
[36:58]It's therapy.
[36:59]It's wait lists.
[37:00]It's trying a medication and trying again over and over for years.
[37:05]It's setting boundaries with some people who won't understand.
[37:09]Survival isn't weakness.
[37:11]It's wisdom we've earned.
[37:13]If you are a survivor hearing me,
[37:15]your voice is never too late, too much, or too little.
[37:19]If all you could do was show up today,
[37:21]you're already trying to make a difference.
[37:25]You do not owe anyone your story.
[37:28]You are owed safety, care, and belief.
[37:32]Your breath is proof that harm does not get the last word.
[37:37]I'm not asking anyone to take a political side.
[37:40]I really don't even follow a lot of politics.
[37:44]I'm asking you to take a stand in solidarity.
[37:48]Protect the vulnerable, not the powerful.
[37:51]Protect children and survivors, not titles and reputations.
[37:58]Our silence doesn't keep us safe.
[38:02]And I hope today's courage from all of us ladies
[38:06]can help someone else be safer tomorrow.
[38:11]We are here and we refuse to be erased.
[38:16]So thank you guys for listening to all of us and being here today.
[38:37]Hello everybody. Thank you for being here.
[38:42]As I stand here today and look around,
[38:47]I want to acknowledge what it feels like to be in the presence
[38:51]of these incredibly brave, powerful women that I stand up here with.
[38:57]I am so empowered by each and every one of your fortitude,
[39:02]and I am following in the brave footsteps of those that came before me.
[39:06]While we each have our own stories and walk down different paths of life,
[39:10]we are bonded together as survivors.
[39:13]When I look into these beautiful faces,
[39:17]I am reminded that we all started our journeys with big hopes and dreams.
[39:23]Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Gillian Maxwell,
[39:27]stole and systematically destroyed those dreams.
[39:32]We are a mosaic of shattered hopes and dreams at their hands.
[39:37]As an aspiring dancer, the manipulation came in forms of offering me
[39:41]dance studio space, discussing opportunities to meet with ballet masters,
[39:45]and aiding a very ill family member of mine,
[39:48]none of which would ever come to pass.
[39:50]Instead, I was left in a cycle of abuse that wore me down and broke me.
[39:56]When it happened, I would have to completely disassociate.
[40:03]Similar to a coma, my brain would need to protect itself,
[40:06]so I would retreat in choreographing in my own head
[40:09]to escape the cruel acts that were being carried out on my body.
[40:13]After, I would go to the studio bundled in giant, baggy clothing.
[40:17]I remember standing there, staring in the mirror,
[40:20]as if it were an empty void.
[40:23]I was past the point of tears.
[40:25]There was nothing left. I was a hollow shell of myself.
[40:29]I could no longer watch my body move, let alone dance.
[40:34]He had taken something sacred from me.
[40:37]Two decades later, I am still experiencing lingering effects
[40:40]of what happened to me as a teenager.
[40:43]I am just one story in the mosaic of women
[40:47]taking back their power by confronting the horrific truths of their pasts
[40:52]due to Jeffrey Epstein and Gillian Maxwell.
[40:56]We stand here today in the nation's capital for no other reason
[41:00]than to say that women's voices will not be marginalized.
[41:06]We stand together as a mosaic of stories,
[41:10]but we're also finding our way back to ourselves.
[41:13]We are reclaiming the fragmented shards
[41:16]of the hopes and dreams of our pasts
[41:19]to paint a better future for the next generation of women.
[41:23]This story has come to Washington to be told.
[41:27]We will be heard. Thank you.
[41:43]My name is Jess Michaels, and I'm a 1991 Jeffrey Epstein survivor.
[41:49]27 years.
[41:51]For 27 years, I thought I was the only one that Jeffrey Epstein raped.
[41:57]I believed I was alone and I was kept silent by the shame that was inside me
[42:02]and by the fear outside in the world.
[42:06]But I wasn't the only one. None of us were.
[42:11]And what once kept us silent now fuels that fire and the power of our voices.
[42:18]We are not the footnotes in some infamous Predator's tabloid article.
[42:26]We are the experts and the subjects of this story.
[42:31]We are the proof that fear did not break us.
[42:35]And we don't just speak for ourselves,
[42:38]but for every survivor whose story is still unspoken.
[42:43]For those not with us today.
[42:46]For Virginia, whose courage lit the path and opened the door for us to walk through.
[42:54]This is what power looks like.
[42:56]Survivors united, voices joined, refusing to be dismissed.
[43:03]Know this, justice and accountability are not favors from the powerful.
[43:10]They are obligations decades overdue.
[43:13]This moment began with Epstein's crimes,
[43:17]but it's going to be remembered for survivors demanding justice,
[43:22]demanding truth, demanding accountability.
[43:26]And we will not stop until survivor voices shape justice,
[43:32]transform culture, and define the future.
[43:39]We are no longer whispers.
[43:42]We are one powerful voice too loud to ignore.
[43:45]And we will never be silenced again.
[43:49]Thank you.
[44:24]Okay, we're in the home stretch.
[44:27]We are going to bring up Eric Faduli, who is a lawyer.
[44:33]Sometimes survivors are ready to be seen, they're not ready to be heard.
[44:38]And so we would love to bring you up,
[44:41]because you represent so many survivors who are so critical to this story.
[44:55]Good morning, everyone.
[44:56]My name is Eric Faduli,
[44:59]and I've had the privilege of representing up to 11 survivors of Jeffrey Epstein.
[45:04]And one of them is standing next to me here today.
[45:07]This is Rosa.
[45:09]You may not realize this, but what I just did
[45:18]is the first time anyone has ever said Rosa's name publicly
[45:22]as being attached and being abused by Jeffrey Epstein.
[45:25]And this is also the first time she has ever appeared publicly
[45:38]as a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein.
[45:40]And I say that because it was last night that she flew into Washington, D.C.,
[45:47]inspired by the solidarity of all of you,
[45:50]by the compassion of all of you,
[45:52]and by the courage of all of you to be here today.
[46:02]And I'm so proud of Rosa, and I'm so proud of all of you.
[46:06]But the truth is, Rosa shouldn't be here today.
[46:10]Rosa shouldn't have to be here today, and I'm going to tell you why.
[46:13]Because Rosa was trafficked from Uzbekistan
[46:16]under the guise of a modeling contract in 2009.
[46:22]That means that Rosa wouldn't be here today
[46:26]if Alex Acosta, had it had Jeffrey Epstein in his grasp,
[46:31]had what every single law enforcement officer dreams of,
[46:36]to stop a predator in his tracks.
[46:38]And what did he do?
[46:40]He gave him a slap on the wrist and let him to continue to abuse.
[46:44]And had he not, Epstein never would have met Rosa,
[46:47]and Rosa would not have to be here today.
[46:50]But none of you should have to be here today.
[46:54]None of you should have to be there today
[46:56]because if when Jeffrey Epstein was finally arrested in 2016
[47:00]and under federal custody,
[47:02]he wouldn't have been allowed to take his own life
[47:05]and avoid the accountability and justice you all deserve.
[47:09]And none of you should be here today
[47:11]because Ghislaine Maxwell should not have been given a platform
[47:15]to deny the crimes against her
[47:19]who was convicted of trafficking and tricking 14-year-old girls.
[47:29]She should not have been given a platform
[47:31]and she should not have been rewarded after that platform
[47:34]in a minimum security resort.
[47:37]And none of you should have to be here today
[47:42]because they should just release the files.
[47:47]No more slow rolling, no more meetings, no more strategy,
[47:50]no more interviews behind closed doors.
[47:53]Release the files and give you all and Rosa the accountability,
[47:58]the exposure, and most importantly the closure you all deserve.
[48:03]Thank you.
[48:04]Our last speaker this morning is no stranger to the plight of survivors.
[48:20]And so with that I'd love to welcome Gloria Allred to wrap us up here.
[48:36]Give a big round of applause to all the survivors
[48:39]and all the victims and all the supporters today.
[48:45]I commend you and it matters that you're here.
[48:49]Let me just say, your voice is important,
[48:54]but power only recognizes power.
[48:58]And for many years we have not exercised our power
[49:03]in a way that helped win change.
[49:07]And you all and we all have been betrayed.
[49:11]I represent Alicia Arden and 26 other brave survivors
[49:16]of Jeffrey Epstein and some of Elaine Maxwell.
[49:21]And in 1997 my client Alicia Arden went to the police in Santa Monica
[49:27]and said that she had been the victim of sexually inappropriate conduct
[49:33]by Jeffrey Epstein when he invited her to be auditioning
[49:38]for Victoria's Secret catalog.
[49:41]And she went to the police and they said,
[49:45]why don't you think about it before you file a police report?
[49:48]She thought about it and came back the following week
[49:51]and filed the first documented police report against Jeffrey Epstein
[49:55]in 1997.
[49:58]And you all were betrayed because there was no prosecution.
[50:02]Believe women, let's hear it.
[50:04]Believe women.
[50:06]Believe women.
[50:08]Believe women.
[50:10]And then the victims and all of us were betrayed.
[50:14]When?
[50:16]In Florida.
[50:18]Mr. Acosta made that deal,
[50:20]U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
[50:23]Made that deal that instead of 60 felony counts
[50:28]that could have been filed by the United States Attorney,
[50:32]two counts were filed by the state attorney
[50:36]and Jeffrey Epstein, without having a trial,
[50:41]was able to go to his office every day as part of the sentence
[50:46]and just sleep in the jail at night for 13 months.
[50:49]Is that justice?
[50:51]You were betrayed.
[50:53]And then, of course, there was New York.
[50:58]New York, where Jeffrey Epstein was brought in, arrested.
[51:02]I saw him at the last hearing in federal court.
[51:06]And so many victims and so many survivors thought,
[51:09]at last there's justice.
[51:12]But instead of justice, there was a dead body,
[51:15]the Metropolitan Correctional Center,
[51:17]and questions are still being asked.
[51:19]Was it suicide? Was it homicide?
[51:22]But the victims never got to testify at trial
[51:25]and confront that sexual predator.
[51:28]Was that justice?
[51:30]We're overdue for justice.
[51:35]We're not going to be waiting for justice.
[51:37]We are fighting for justice.
[51:41]And let me tell you, no more talk of the word pedophiles,
[51:47]which only means a man who is attracted to children.
[51:51]We're not talking about pedophiles.
[51:54]We're talking about sexual predators and child molesters.
[51:58]Let's get the word in about what the crime was that they committed.
[52:03]Do you agree?
[52:06]And finally, let me just say,
[52:10]these predators took advantage of vulnerable children,
[52:15]of vulnerable adults.
[52:17]We know how vulnerable women can be.
[52:20]And they abused their power.
[52:22]They abused their trust.
[52:24]And it's time to meet power with power.
[52:27]There are three stages of evolution.
[52:29]The first is victim.
[52:31]The second is survivor.
[52:33]And the third is fighter for change.
[52:35]Are you going to be fighters for change?
[52:39]Not just today, but every day.
[52:43]Not just in politics and Congress,
[52:46]but in lawsuits, in speaking to people,
[52:50]your coworkers, your children, your mothers.
[52:54]Help them, support them to stand up to win justice
[52:58]because nobody has ever given women and children any rights.
[53:03]We've always had to fight to win them.
[53:05]We've had to fight to keep them.
[53:07]Will you fight that fight?
[53:10]And I leave you with this, one of my favorite sayings.
[53:15]Pray for the dead, and that's for Virginia Roberts
[53:18]and all those who didn't make it here today.
[53:21]Pray for the dead.
[53:23]But fight like hell for the living.
[53:27]Keep up the fight. Let me hear it.
[53:29]Keep up the fight. Keep up the fight.
[53:32]Keep up the fight. Keep up the fight.
[53:35]Thank you very much.
[53:46]Thank you. Thank you everybody for coming.
[53:50]One last unbelievable rallying cheer for all the survivors here.
[53:55]What do we want?
[54:01]Okay, everybody, there's the press conference starting in a few minutes.
[54:04]Do you want to just go on over and we'll meet you over there, whoever wants to.
[54:10]Otherwise, stay here. We have this space for a while longer.
[54:14]Thank you so much.