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The Lasting Harm
The Lasting Harm: Witnessing the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell | Lucia Osborne-Crowley
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The explosive, behind-the-scenes account of the criminal trial of Ghislaine Maxwell. 'Lucia Osborne-Crowley is a lighthouse of a writer: steadfast, illuminating and patiently cutting through darkness and horror to lead us to safety.' - Benjamin Law 'Lucia Osborne-Crowley is a writer of depth, determination and uncommon insight.' - Julia Baird I understand – and sympathise with – the feeling you might have that you already know the Jeffrey Epstein story. But I am not here to tell you a story about Jeffrey Epstein, or even Ghislaine Maxwell. I am here to tell you the stories of these women, many of whom have never spoken at length before, and about the real impact of sexual trauma on their lives. In December 2021, Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted of five counts of sex-trafficking of minors, and is now serving 20 years in prison for the role she played in Jeffrey Epstein's abuse of four girls. The trial was meticulously covered by journalist and legal reporter Lucia Osborne-Crowley, one of only four reporters allowed into the courtroom every day. The Lasting Harm is her account of that trial, a gripping true crime drama and a blistering critique of a criminal justice system ill-equipped to deliver justice for abuse survivors, no matter the outcome. Centring the stories of four women and their testimonies, and supplemented by extra material to which Osborne-Crowley has exclusive access, The Lasting Harm brings this incendiary trial to life, questions our age-old appetite for crime and punishment, and offers a new blueprint for meaningful reparative justice. 'A courageous silence-breaker. We need more journalists like her.' - Jennifer Robinson 'Powerful, vivid and affecting.' - David Nicholls, author of One Day 'Lucia's work is urgent, necessary and courageous.' - Elizabeth Day, author of How To Fail
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squirrelbrain
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Whew, this was a tough read, but definitely worth it. The author, whose previous book was about her own experience of sexual abuse, focuses on the 4 women who told their stories during the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as the defence‘s attempts to discredit them.

A slight quibble would be a couple of areas that seemed repetitive - sometimes it was clearly deliberate for emphasis but there were some points that needed better editing.

slategreyskies I would not be able to read this book. This sort of thing makes me furious. I have a close friend whose daughter went through this, & even though she was a minor, she had to testify in court, & the defense did the same thing to her. She was the one on trial rather than the man who was the true criminal. In her case, the only reason that the man received a guilty verdict & got jail time is because of my friend‘s testimony from walking in on it. 2mo
slategreyskies (Cont.) The defense was able to discredit her, because of her trauma. The system fails survivors. 2mo
squirrelbrain Yes, @slategreyskies - they tried to discredit them in SO many ways. There is some positivity in there though - the author interviewed some jurors after the trial and they were convinced by the 4 witnesses from the start. 2mo
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keepingupwiththepenguins
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In case it‘s not obvious, The Lasting Harm warrants a serious trigger warning. Still, in the tradition of She Said and other literature of the #MeToo movement, reading The Lasting Harm is bearing witness to that which has been hidden from view for too long. Full review: https://keepingupwiththepenguins.com/the-lasting-harm-lucia-osborne-crowley/

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