An article by Gerard Baker in the London Times summed up the Epstein files by saying: “Thanks to Epstein’s crimes, we have been given a glimpse into the way the liberal capitalist global order has worked. And in the process, perhaps, we can see even more clearly why so many people want to sweep it away.”
Indeed. They expose the corruption and depravity of some of the world’s richest and most powerful people.
Epstein abused and exploited women on a hideous scale, constructing a vast sex-trafficking operation. Many of his victims were children—the youngest was alleged to have been just nine.
Yet a number of very powerful people were prepared to keep supporting and working with Epstein even after he had been convicted in 2008 of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl and federal prosecutors had identified 34 others he had allegedly abused.
As Baker put it, “scroll through Epstein’s email contacts” and you have a “roll call” of the global elite. That roll call includes politicians like Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, fascist and Republican powerbroker Steve Bannon, former British minister Peter Mandelson and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, royalty like Prince Andrew, prominent intellectual Noam Chomsky and billionaires such as Bill Gates, Elon Musk and Richard Branson.
All have denied having anything to do with Epstein’s crimes. But many have been exposed as having lied about the extent of their connections with him and knowledge of his activities.
Musk claimed, “Epstein tried to get me to go to his island and I REFUSED,” but Epstein’s emails show him writing to ask, “Do you have any parties planned? … I really want to hit the party scene in St Barts or elsewhere and let loose.”
There are endless conspiracy theories about Epstein, such as those claiming that he worked for Russia or Israel. Epstein knew and worked with powerful people in both countries. But the reality is that Epstein worked for himself.
Epstein personally was a paedophile sexual abuser. He also traded access to the bodies of young women as a favour to wealthy and powerful men. Alongside this he provided flights on private jets or visits to his island for information and profit.
Epstein worked to build connections with billionaires and other powerful figures in order to strike business deals. This allowed him to build a personal fortune worth at least $800 million when he died in 2019.
The rich and powerful who colluded with him were not ensnared but willing participants. Some participated in his sexual abuse, others were prepared to overlook his crimes because of his money and power, in search of business opportunities and profits for themselves.
What explains this is not a shadowy conspiracy theory but the way the ruling class constantly conspire between themselves for power and profit.
The rich also use their money to buy their way out of trouble. Billionaire Leon Black paid $US62.5 million to the US Virgin Islands to be released from any potential claims arising from the territory’s investigation of Epstein’s sex trafficking.
Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $US75 million in 2023 to settle a lawsuit alleging it had knowingly profited from it, too.
Epstein himself avoided a potential life sentence for his initial conviction after a deal with then district attorney Alexander Acosta, who is now Trump’s Labor Secretary.
That deal saw Epstein sentenced to a private wing of Palm Beach County jail that enabled him to leave six days a week for a plush office, despite clear rules stating that sex offenders cannot qualify for work release.
Sexism
The Epstein files also expose the deep sexism at the heart of the system and of those who run it. Epstein and his rich associates willingly abused young women often from vulnerable or poor backgrounds.
They justified this by dehumanising their victims. There are transcripts of Epstein’s offsider, Ghislaine Maxwell, calling the girls “trash”. In one email Epstein describes a woman to Prince Andrew as “26, russian, clevere [sic] beautiful, trustworthy”.
In another, Epstein tells Steve Tisch, co-owner of the New York Giants, he had a “present” for him—a woman he calls “tahitian speaks mostly french, exotic”. Branson invited Epstein to visit his own private island, “as long as you bring your harem!”
Epstein and his collaborators assumed that their money and power meant they were above the law. Most of those who participated in Epstein’s crimes still walk free.
But as British socialist Judy Cox points out, “Epstein was eventually brought down not by the justice system but by determined women he had abused.” We will need more determination like that to bring down the system that allows people like Epstein and his rich friends to run, and ruin, our world.
By Chris Breen
