Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) urged the House Oversight Committee to hold a hearing amplifying the voices of survivors abused by Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and their associates. In a letter shared with The 19th and signed by 15 other Democrats, Pressley asked Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) to invite survivors to testify directly before Congress.
Pressley, herself a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and sexual assault in college, said the hearing is critical for transparency, accountability and healing. “Those that have been victimized by Epstein and his co-conspirators… deserve this transparency, this accountability, this healing, and I think they’ve not been centered enough,” she told The 19th.
The request comes amid renewed controversy over the so-called “Epstein Files.” Attorney General Pam Bondi recently said the alleged Epstein “client list” does not exist and no further records will be released — contradicting earlier Trump administration pledges to make them public. The reversal has sparked criticism from both Democrats and some conservatives who had framed the case as central to protecting women and children from sexual predators.
Pressley linked the lack of transparency to what she described as broader rollbacks in survivor protections, including cuts to the State Department’s anti-trafficking office and reduced federal support for Violence Against Women Act programs.
For Pressley, the push is also deeply personal. She cited Maya Angelou’s memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and Anita Hill’s 1991 testimony as formative moments that showed her the power — and risks — of speaking out. Years later, Hill presented Pressley with a leadership award, whispering, “I believe you.” Pressley says she now wants to offer that same affirmation to Epstein survivors: “I want to be that whisper.”
The Oversight Committee has broad investigative powers but, under GOP control, is unlikely to grant the request. Still, Pressley warned that inaction would send the wrong message. “If they have the courage to raise their hand and say, ‘Call upon me,’ then we cannot meet them with inaction and complicity,” she said.
“If it doesn’t happen,” she added, “I will remind people why it didn’t happen — that those elected officials are on the side of predators, while Democrats are on the side of survivors.”
