Epstein Survivors Take Capitol Hill by Storm, Demand Justice and Transparency

Last week, amidst the fanfare of a royal visit to the U.S. Capitol, a far more consequential and courageous scene unfolded in a small, packed conference room in the Cannon House Office Building. Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s trafficking and abuse network, along with family members of Virginia Giuffre and leading advocacy groups, gathered to break the silence that has long protected the powerful men behind these crimes.

Convened by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), this roundtable was no staged photo op. It was a raw, urgent demand for accountability and systemic reform. Survivors including Dani Bensky, Sharlene Rochard, Marijke Chartouni, and Sara Ziff—herself a survivor and a relentless advocate—shared brief but powerful testimonies of abuse and the institutional failures that allowed it to persist. Giuffre’s stepbrother Sky Roberts and sister-in-law Amanda Roberts, founders of the Speak Out, Act, Reclaim (SOAR) organization, stood alongside them, continuing Virginia’s fight for justice even after her tragic death.

The presence of groups like Model Alliance, SOAR, World Without Exploitation, Polaris Project, and UltraViolet highlighted a growing movement that refuses to treat Epstein’s crimes as isolated incidents. Instead, they expose a decades-long pattern of law enforcement inaction and systemic enabling of trafficking and sexual violence.

Despite the survivors’ bravery, their pleas are met too often with performative sympathy and political avoidance. This roundtable was a stark rejection of that pattern. Survivors spoke with trembling voices, tears, and steely resolve, compressing years of trauma into minutes to demand concrete legislative action.

Members of Congress including Summer Lee, Pramila Jayapal, Teresa Leger Fernández, Ayanna Pressley, and Melanie Stansbury showed up to pledge their support, emphasizing the urgency of enforcing the Epstein Files Transparency Act and releasing what advocates estimate as roughly three million unreleased documents. They also pushed for the passage of Virginia’s Law, which would expand the statute of limitations for civil claims in sexual abuse and trafficking cases—an essential reform given how current limits often bar survivors from seeking justice years later.

This roundtable followed a series of public actions honoring Virginia Giuffre’s legacy, including a “Butterfly Vigil” on the National Mall organized by UltraViolet Action and the Roberts family. These events serve as both remembrance and a renewed call to action, demanding that the powerful who enabled Epstein’s abuse be held accountable.

The message from these survivors is clear: no more silence, no more dismissal, and no more protection for perpetrators. Their fight shines a harsh light on the corrupt systems that have failed them and challenges Congress to act decisively now. We will be watching.