Pressley: “I hope Melania talks to Chairman Comer and Trump to make this happen. Survivors have waited long enough.”

As a Survivor of Sexual Abuse, Pressley Has Led Calls for Congressional Hearing that Centers Survivors

BOSTON – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) issued the following statement after First Lady Melania Trump echoed Congresswoman Pressley’s longstanding calls for a Congressional hearing that centers survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse. As a survivor of sexual abuse herself, Congresswoman Pressley has been a dedicated advocate for survivors’ justice and has led committee Democrats in calling for a full Congressional hearing to ensure survivors’ firsthand accounts are heard.

“I’ve been calling for a public hearing with survivors for nearly a year. They deserve answers, accountability, and healing,” said Congresswoman Pressley. “I hope Melania talks to Chairman Comer and Trump to make this happen. Survivors have waited long enough.”

In February 2026, Congresswoman Pressley joined survivors of Epstein’s abuse and members of the Democratic Women’s Caucus to demand transparency, accountability, and healing for survivors.

As a survivor of sexual abuse herself, Congresswoman Pressley has led Democrats on the House Oversight Committee calling for a full, public Oversight hearing to prioritize the individuals who survived the horrific abuse associated with  by Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, and their associates, and whose firsthand accounts may not be sufficiently represented in the Department of Justice’s records.

Rep. Pressley has led the demand for a hearing with survivors as the Committee has continued its investigation and after the Congresswoman successfully helped pass a motion by Ranking Member Robert Garcia and Congresswoman Summer Lee to force the Committee to subpoena the Epstein files.

In recent interviews, Rep. Pressley described why her work to subpoena the Epstein files is deeply personal to her.

Throughout her time in Congress, Rep. Pressley has been a champion for justice for survivors of sexual violence and reproductive freedom.

In July 2024, Rep. Pressley reintroduced the Bringing an End to Harassment by Enhancing Accountability and Rejecting Discrimination (BE HEARD) in the Workplace Act of 2024. In June 2024, Rep. Pressley renewed her calls for accountability and survivor-focused solutions following the damning reports of a toxic work environment at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).  In June 2024, Rep. Pressley also sent a letter to the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) requesting information about the botched closure of FCI Dublin, abuse of women while they were being transferred to other facilities, and BOP’s management of investigations into the staff sexual misconduct and abuse at FCI Dublin and other federal BOP facilities.

Rep. Pressley is also a lead co-sponsor of H.R. 5388, legislation that would prevent the Secretary of Education from rolling back Title IX protections for survivors, as well as H.Res. 560, a resolution calling for an impeachment inquiry into Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, following reporting on new allegations of sexual misconduct committed by the Associate Justice.

In April 2019, following the passage of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019, Rep. Pressley issued a statement honoring her mother, Sandra Pressley, a survivor of domestic violence. Rep. Pressley is also the lead co-sponsor of an amendment to the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that would establish the first-ever grant program dedicated to supporting LGBTQ+ survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, which passed the House of Representatives in March 2021.

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