The Epstein Files Transparency Act passed the House of Representatives by a 427–1 vote. The Senate followed with unanimous consent clearing the measure for President Donald Trump, who has indicated he will sign it.
At Fanshawe College students said the release represents both a moment in public accountability and a potential source of renewed trauma for survivors.
“Honestly, it took so long because there were more than likely a ton of very powerful people on that list. I wouldn’t say it’s justice all the way, we still have a very long way to go,” said a Fanshawe student.
Jennifer Dunn, the executive director of the London Abused Women’s Centre, said she felt “a bit of relief in the name of survivors being believed,” but that optimism was tempered by a sense of worry about how the release may affect the women whose experiences are documented. “What’s going to happen now?” she said in an interview. “What are survivors going to be subjected to, or re-traumatized by?”
Dunn said the prolonged debate in Congress reflects patterns she sees regularly in her work, where cases involving powerful men move slowly and often leave survivors waiting years for closure. “When powerful men are accused of violence, the system works differently,” she said. “Survivors wait years for closure, if they get it at all.”
She noted that many women choose not to report sexual violence through the criminal justice system due to disbelief, stigma and the emotional cost of navigating lengthy proceedings. “Only six per cent of sexual-violence cases are reported to police,” she said, citing recent federal data. “That number alone shows the system isn’t working.”
Dunn said meaningful change would require deep, structural reform. “If we had unlimited resources, I’d deconstruct the whole system and rebuild it from the ground up,” she said. “These institutions were built by men, for men. We’re still catching up.” She added that education and prevention remain critical, and that society must engage men and boys to change attitudes about consent and power. “There is no reason young boys should see a president call a woman a ‘piggy’ on national TV without any accountability,” she said. “That shapes what they think is acceptable.”
As the United States prepares for the release of the Epstein files, many in London say the implications will extend well beyond the names or details contained in the documents.
