Name: After Epstein: how to hold elites accountable | DW News
Uploaded: 2026-03-13T17:03:05.000Z
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Please raise your hands if you have still not been able to meet with this Department of Justice.

Please know for the record that every single survivor has raised their hand.

The Epstein scandal exposed more than a serial sexual abuser.

It revealed how women who come forward aren't believed.

And how wealth and influence can shield the powerful from justice, creating a culture of impunity at the very top.

It's not just that they don't think they should have to obey any laws, they don't think they should have to obey any norms either.

So the norm that says adults don't exploit children, that's gone.

It used to be that if wealthy men had these habits, they went to great pains to keep them under wraps.

They didn't have group chats where they bragged about it and swapped videos and made it a status symbol to be a serial rapist of little children.

What has caused outrage is that there hardly seem to be any consequences.

While some Epstein affiliates are getting arrested in Europe, only two people in the US have faced legal consequences.

Jeffrey Epstein himself, who died in his prison cell, and

his longtime conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, who's serving a 20 year sentence.

It makes me sick to my stomach that there's perpetrators out there that obviously helped him in many ways for a very long time and they're still out there with no punishment.

Now we have evidence that it was a lot worse than we have ever imagined.

And he's so connected to too many people around the world, it's scary.

While numerous names and contacts have emerged in the millions of pages of the released Epscion files, US Prosecutors so far have not criminally charged any additional associates.

Just because someone's name shows up in the Epstein files doesn't automatically mean they committed a crime.

But when certain emails contain damaging or clearly questionable content, many people argue that this warrants further investigation to clarify the context and determine whether any laws were broken, Trump and the Department of Justice have in fact signaled that there won't be any more investigations.

What does this mean for holding elites accountable in the future?

Here's what survivors and advocates say needs to change.

This can be seen in the Epstein scandal as well.

It's not like women are only now starting to talk about Epstein and his associates abuse.

Over the last several decades, prosecutors and investigators interviewed more than three dozens of his accusers.

In a memo, they Epstein essentially operated a pyramid scheme of sexual exploitation.

Yet it took decades to charge Epstein and Maxwell.

None of the other Men accused of sexual abuse or facilitating Epstein's abuse were ever prosecuted.

Even if Epstein's powerful associates had been prosecuted, chances are they would have not faced any criminal charges.

That's because the conviction rate from sexual crime is shockingly low.

According to a 2025 NBC News investigation, in the United States, less than 4% of reported rapes, sexual assaults, and

child sex abuse allegations ever result in a sex crime conviction.

In Germany, only one in eight reported rape cases leads to a conviction.

And research shows that that the real number of assaults is likely far higher.

Reporting sexual violence often means reliving the trauma in detail, facing skepticism or victim blaming, and

going through a long, emotionally exhausting investigation with no guarantee that the case will ever lead to justice.

Survivors say it would help if the accused faced the same rigorous questioning in the process.

And if shame changes sides, as Gisele Pellicaut put it, who publicly waived her anonymity during a major mass rape trial in France to challenge victim blaming.

But even now, in the midst of the Epstein scandal, when the whole world is watching, say they're still not being acknowledged and protected.

This can be seen in the DOJ's handling of the Epstein files.

The names of many powerful individuals remain redacted while the names, personal data, and

even images, nude images of many victims were released.

And the DOJ didn't contact any of the survivors during the recent reviews of the files.

To the survivors in the room, if you are willing, please stand.

And if you are willing, please raise your hands.

If you have still not been able to meet with this Department of Justice, please know for the record that every single survivor has raised their hand.

Survivors say the lack of acknowledgement further stigmatizes them and makes it even harder to speak out.

I started speaking out and unfortunately for me, it triggered me to remember, you know, the trauma.

And I ended up having a mental breakdown.

That's why it's so important to create structures in which survivors are being listened to, helped, and protected.

While the ultra wealthy often seem untouchable in legal or political systems, they still have a powerful vulnerability, their social standing.

These oligarchs do have an Achilles heel and we should use it a lot more often.

And it's free and it's non violent and many people can participate in it, and

Basically, do not accept these people into polite society.

If you're a server in a restaurant, put down Your order pad.

Institutions care about their reputation, too.

That's why some Americans have taken to social media to pressure them into action and demanding investigations into Epstein's associates.

If we all call one phone number until it literally crashes from our rage and fury, that sends a message, guys, our voices can be heard.

Going after the money that often shields powerful people from consequences is also a way to hold elites accountable.

The Epstein story is an offshore story, literally in the sense that the man bought an island in the Caribbean.

And, you know, that's what a lot of offshore tycoons do.

As a very practical matter, one of the ways we combat this is we tax these people, and

we don't play any more games about saying, oh, well, we're going to exempt you from taxes, because you can use the offshore financial system to play little tricks with who owns what and where your profits are booked.

Several lawsuits have tried to hold financial institutions accountable for their ties to Epstein.

In one major case, a survivor known as Jane Doe sued JPMorgan Chase on behalf of other victims, accusing the bank of enabling Epstein's trafficking operations.

The bank later agreed to pay a $290 million settlement while denying any wrongdoing.

But for survivors, the fight for accountability often begins with transforming anger into action.

I started making advocacy work for children that are heavily trafficked.

I want to live in a world where this doesn't happen anymore.

Today was symbolically a huge day for survivors everywhere, especially survivors of Jeffrey Epstein, who, like myself, were denied their day in court.