When Jeffrey Epstein and his former girlfriend, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, were arrested on federal sex-trafficking charges a media firestorm ensued.
It was the evil, sordid, greed-laced stuff Hollywood can’t get enough of: high-profile, high-powered players with private islands, planes and a perverted, predatory playbook.
The case rapidly transformed into near-constant front-page news, inspiring countless documentaries and investigative reports that delved into Maxwell and Epstein’s mysterious and privileged pasts.
Amid the whirlwind, London-based Australian journalist Lucia Osborne-Crowley, who was one of only four journalists allowed in the New York City courtroom during Maxwell’s sex-trafficking trial in 2021, recognised a critical narrative being overlooked (one that she was uniquely positioned to give a platform to): those of the women who sat bravely in the witness stand and were forced to re-live their most painful experiences in the hope that justice might finally be served.
“We often fall into the trap of giving far too much oxygen to perpetrators and not enough to victims,” reflects Osborne-Crowley, drawing from her own experiences as a survivor of child
sexual assault and rape.
This connection to the victims fuelled her passion as she observed the trial from the courtroom gallery, and that passion has resulted in her new book, The Lasting Harm, which involved hundreds of hours interviewing Maxwell and Epstein’s victims and weaving their stories together with Osborne-Crowley’s firsthand account of the courtroom proceedings.
She describes it as the proudest achievement of her career. “We had to fight tooth and nail to get this book and their real stories published,” she says.
“So many people wanted to stop us, but we did it.” The book emphatically calls for a renewed approach to reparative justice that serves and protects victims rather than re-traumatising them.
Osborne-Crowley’s guiding principle, “Bravery is not the absence of fear,” perfectly encapsulates her approach to storytelling and activism.
“When something frightens you, it often means you’re on the right path,” she advises, adding that it’s all about reclaiming power.
“The people who’ve taken advantage of you, the people who’ve underestimated you, those are the people who will be watching your brilliance the closest. They are your most
captive audience. Give them a good show.”
marie claire’s 2024 Women of the Year Awards are presented by Swarovski and supported by Volvo, Max Mara, Revlon, Dr Lewinns and G.H. Mumm.
