Last Wednesday’s Senate vote was a moral failure of the highest order. By a margin of 51-49, senators tabled an amendment that would have forced the release of the complete Epstein Files — documents that could finally bring transparency to one of the most disturbing scandals in recent American history. Six survivors made the difficult journey to D.C. to bravely share their stories and demand accountability. They deserved better.
The files contain interview transcripts, details about raids, and crucially, the names of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s associates. While there’s significant public interest in whether President Trump or his associates appear in these documents, our primary concern must be with the survivors who continue to face what researchers call institutional betrayal from the very government that should protect them.
A pattern of institutional failure
Institutional betrayal occurs when an institution fails those who depend on it most. It’s not just about individual bad actors — it’s about systemic failure to prevent or respond supportively to wrongdoings like sexual assault. This betrayal can be overt, such as when officials separate children from their parents, or more subtle, like when an employee reports harassment but continues to be victimized because their employer fails to take action.
Research led by Jennifer J. Freyd, a Psychology professor at the University of Oregon and founder of the Center for Institutional Courage, demonstrates that this kind of betrayal causes measurable harm — both psychological and physical. When institutions engage in covering up wrongdoing and retaliation against whistleblowers, they compound the original trauma.
The cost of political loyalty
The Wednesday vote revealed a troubling truth: most Republicans in Congress chose loyalty to Trump over transparency and justice. While some Republicans joined Democrats in pushing for the files’ release, the majority preferred to ally themselves with the president rather than survivors seeking truth.
This calculation becomes even more problematic given the strong likelihood that Trump and other powerful individuals are named in the files in some capacity, despite denials from the White House. Trump was already found responsible for sexual abuse and defamation against E. Jean Carroll, with a federal appeals court recently upholding the $83 million judgment against him.
Learning from past failures
We’ve witnessed this pattern before. When Christine Blasey Ford testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s alleged sexual assault during high school in 2018, she faced immediate retaliation. Her testimony led to death threats that forced her family to hide in hotels with 24-hour security. Remarkably, by 2024, she still required security protection.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), a House Oversight Committee member who met with Epstein survivors, captured the scope of the problem perfectly: “The entire public needs to understand just how systemic and how far and wide and how deep this institutional betrayal goes.”
The path to institutional courage
The alternative to institutional betrayal is institutional courage — a commitment to seek the truth and engage in moral action, despite unpleasantness, risk, and short-term cost. This requires accountability, transparency, making reparations where needed, and maintaining responsiveness to members who depend on the institution.
Institutional courage demands concrete steps: acknowledgement of wrongdoing, genuine apology, and transparent responses to disclosures of violence. When survivors are treated with respect rather than reflexive denial, when abusers are named and held accountable, healing and justice become possible.
What the research tells us
Monica J. Casper, a Sociology professor at Seattle University and former special assistant on gender-based violence at San Diego State University, has spent decades working with survivors and analyzing abusive systems. Her research reveals fundamental truths about recovery: when survivors are listened to and respected, they can heal. When they’re castigated for sharing their truths, their healing is delayed and further harm is perpetrated.
This research shows that institutional courage actually buffers against the harms of both sexual violations and institutional betrayal. The science supports what basic human decency suggests: survivors deserve respect, truth, and accountability.
The hidden network
The Epstein Files contain crucial information about a network of powerful individuals who may have been complicit in horrific crimes. Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted for her role in Epstein’s scheme in 2021, but the full extent of this network remains hidden behind government secrecy.
The American people deserve to know which political leaders associated and possibly conspired with Epstein and Maxwell to sexually abuse children. The survivors deserve to know who was complicit in their suffering so they can seek proper accountability and begin genuine healing.
Beyond partisan politics
Supporting survivors of rape and abuse should never be a partisan effort. Yet sadly, we’re seeing many Republicans prefer to show loyalty to Trump over doing the right thing. This partisan calculation undermines real efforts to address systemic violence against women and children.
Trump has even suggested that domestic violence is not a crime, further undermining efforts to address acts of violence against women. When leaders protect powerful individuals over victims, they send a clear message about whose truth matters in America.
The moral imperative
The U.S. government’s response to the Epstein survivors has been one of massive institutional betrayal. This must change. We cannot speak for individual survivors or assume knowledge of what each one needs, but as gender-based violence researchers with decades of experience, we know certain truths about justice and healing.
When survivors come forward bravely to demand transparency and accountability, our institutions must respond with institutional courage rather than reflexive denial and cover-up. The Senate’s decision to table this amendment represents a fundamental failure to protect those who reasonably expect protection from their government.
What comes next
The likelihood of future progress depends on whether Congress can move beyond partisan divisions and demonstrate the institutional courage these survivors deserve. They have traveled to D.C., shared their painful stories, and demanded action. They have faced decades of silence, retaliation, and institutional betrayal.
Americans deserve leaders who will stand with survivors rather than protect powerful associates of a convicted sex trafficker. The entirety of the Epstein Files should be released immediately. The survivors deserve justice, the American people deserve transparency, and our democratic institutions deserve the chance to replace betrayal with courage.
It’s time for Congress to do the right thing. The survivors have waited long enough.
The choice before us
The path forward is clear: we must replace institutional betrayal with institutional courage. The Senate’s 51-49 decision to table the Epstein Files amendment represents a choice to protect powerful associates over survivors who bravely came to D.C. seeking justice. Research shows that when institutions demonstrate courage through transparency and accountability, survivors can heal and true justice becomes possible. The American people and these courageous survivors deserve nothing less than the complete release of all Epstein Files. Our democratic institutions must choose moral action over political loyalty, truth over cover-up.
