General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsAn observation about one of the Epstein victims who has spoken out.
I watched a podcast last night with Lisa Phillips. She was being interviewed on a podcast that is not the one that she hosts. Ms. Phillips is the one who at the press conference a couple of months ago stood at the podium and said the victims were going to compile their own list.
In this particular interview, she was asked about that. She tried to backtrack and say she didn't say that the victims were compiling a list. Ms. Phillips said that it was about reclaiming her power and that people just took the comment to mean that victims would be compiling a list. The host emphatically stated that she (herself) was "one of those people" who took the comment to mean that victims would be compiling a list. It was VERY clear when Ms. Phillips made the comment at the press conference. There was no mistaking the words used.
It felt like Ms. Phillips is now back peddling. And I am not here to pass judgment on these women. They have been through horrors that most of us can never understand. But it made me sense that someone has gotten to her or something has happened to her of late, and I'm just hoping that these women do not lose their incentive to speak out and see this case through. I sincerely hope that the attorneys handling the cases for these women are providing them with the means to feel safe.
rampartd
(3,167 posts)i;m surprised they have not all suicided by now.
misanthrope
(9,332 posts)"have been suicided"?
Midnight Writer
(25,021 posts)hamsterjill
(16,865 posts)I doubt very seriously that any of the attorneys who represent these women were aware she intended to say that, nor would they have approved. Phillips also defended Trump to an extent in the podcast. It just felt like someone had threatened her.
There's also one survivor who also, every time I've seen her interviewed, makes it a point to bring up Bill Clinton's name. She doesn't imply that Clinton has done anything, she just drops the name.
There are already SO MANY people who would look for any, minute detail to discredit these women. I hope they have good counsel and I hope the women (themselves) will abide by the suggestions that counsel makes. I want them safe, I want them whole and healthy, and I want them to get the justice that they deserve.
CoopersDad
(3,263 posts)And it doesn't need to be done in a way that puts their lives in danger.
hamsterjill
(16,865 posts)As I've said before on DU, I am old and I lived through Deep Throat. There are ways for things to get done.
Kid Berwyn
(22,414 posts)And videos? And audio?
We need them to double-check names.
Jacson6
(1,667 posts)They can sue the victims for defamation and they would have to hire an attorney to defend themselves in a court of law at a very high cost in attorney & legal fees. It is better to have the government publish the list, so that they aren't liable. You can't be sued for reporting a crime to the government. It is just the reality in today's litigious society.
hamsterjill
(16,865 posts)I think Ms. Phillips spoke irresponsibly when she said they would compile a list, etc. I doubt she was advised by her attorney to make that statement. Again, she's a victim and she's been through hell, so I give her some grace. But, the same powerful men that you indicate can sue can also intimidate and frighten.
So, once again, I am stating that I hope the victims follow the advice of their counsel, I hope they get what they need to be healthy and whole, we owe them a debt of gratitude for speaking up, and I hope they are well protected.