Valeria Chomsky, wife of renowned linguist and philosopher Noam Chomsky, has issued a statement apologizing for the couple's "grave mistake" in not thoroughly researching the background of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The apology comes amid renewed scrutiny over their friendship, which was revealed through documents released by the justice department.
In her statement, Valeria Chomsky acknowledged that Noam and she were unaware of the extent of Epstein's crimes until after his second arrest in July 2019. She admitted to being "careless" in not researching Epstein's background thoroughly enough, saying they had been deceived by his presentation as a philanthropist interested in science.
Valeria Chomsky also clarified that Noam's 2019 advice to Epstein on rehabilitating his image was made in context, and that she believed it was based on Epstein's claims of being unfairly persecuted. However, she now realizes that Epstein had orchestrated the narrative to try to repair his reputation by association with prominent figures.
The couple attended social events with Epstein, including dinners at his townhouse and stays at his apartments in New York City and Paris. They also participated in academic gatherings with him, but never visited his private island or knew about any wrongdoing that occurred there.
Valeria Chomsky emphasized that Noam's criticisms of "cancelling culture" were not directed at the women's movement, which he has always supported. Instead, Epstein used Noam's public criticism to present himself as a victim of it.
The couple also had financial transactions with Epstein, including a $20,000 check sent by Epstein to help with a linguistic challenge, and assistance in recovering $270,000 after Noam Chomsky discovered inconsistencies in his retirement resources. However, Valeria Chomsky stressed that these interactions were solely financial in nature and not part of any larger scheme.
Noam Chomsky's ties to Epstein have drawn scrutiny since the release of documents revealing their friendship. The couple's statements aim to provide context for their actions, but also highlight the complexities and nuances involved in assessing the relationships between prominent individuals and those who have been accused of wrongdoing.
In her statement, Valeria Chomsky acknowledged that Noam and she were unaware of the extent of Epstein's crimes until after his second arrest in July 2019. She admitted to being "careless" in not researching Epstein's background thoroughly enough, saying they had been deceived by his presentation as a philanthropist interested in science.
Valeria Chomsky also clarified that Noam's 2019 advice to Epstein on rehabilitating his image was made in context, and that she believed it was based on Epstein's claims of being unfairly persecuted. However, she now realizes that Epstein had orchestrated the narrative to try to repair his reputation by association with prominent figures.
The couple attended social events with Epstein, including dinners at his townhouse and stays at his apartments in New York City and Paris. They also participated in academic gatherings with him, but never visited his private island or knew about any wrongdoing that occurred there.
Valeria Chomsky emphasized that Noam's criticisms of "cancelling culture" were not directed at the women's movement, which he has always supported. Instead, Epstein used Noam's public criticism to present himself as a victim of it.
The couple also had financial transactions with Epstein, including a $20,000 check sent by Epstein to help with a linguistic challenge, and assistance in recovering $270,000 after Noam Chomsky discovered inconsistencies in his retirement resources. However, Valeria Chomsky stressed that these interactions were solely financial in nature and not part of any larger scheme.
Noam Chomsky's ties to Epstein have drawn scrutiny since the release of documents revealing their friendship. The couple's statements aim to provide context for their actions, but also highlight the complexities and nuances involved in assessing the relationships between prominent individuals and those who have been accused of wrongdoing.
. I mean, we've all been misinformed or misled by ppl we thought were good friends before. It's not cool that Epstein was using their reputations to try and fix his own image, but it's also not surprising given how manipulative some ppl can be.
. The fact that Valeria was "careless" with her research is a pretty big deal, but I think we should cut them some slack. We've all made mistakes in our lives, and it's how we learn from 'em that matters.
. I think he's still got a point about some people using criticism as a way to shift the blame, and it's refreshing to see him standing by his principles.
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. I get it, they didn't know about the full extent of his crimes until later, but still, being friends with someone who's been accused of such heinous things is a pretty big red flag 
. And yeah, Noam's advice to Epstein was questionable at best 
. But for real though, this whole thing is super problematic 
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... how could you not research that background properly? I'm not sayin' Noam and Valeria are bad people or nothin', but this whole thing just feels like a big ol' mess 
. And now they're tryin' to spin it as some kinda context, but it's hard to see how. Epstein was a master manipulator, for sure 
... I'm not buyin' all the apologies and whatnot. Just seems like a case of rich people doin' rich people favors, ya know? 
. like no one knew? it just goes to show you how easy it is to get swept up in social circles and lose sight of whats really going on. and lets be real, noms connection to epstein has some serious implications for his whole "cancelling culture" thing 
, I'm so done with socialites thinking they can just waltz into a conversation about sensitive topics without doing their due diligence 
. Valeria Chomsky's apology for not researching Epstein's background thoroughly enough is the bare minimum - it's too little, too late 
. I mean, come on, you're friends with someone who's been accused of running a sex trafficking ring and you barely even know they have any victims? 
It's like she's trying to sweep the whole thing under the rug 
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He claimed he was just trying to help, but now it sounds like he was enabling him from the start 
. I'm not buying it 
. The Chomskys' friendship with Epstein has been a mess from the start, and this apology just highlights how clueless they were 
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Valeria Chomsky's apology just makes me wonder how could they not research Epstein's background thoroughly enough? I mean, come on, a convicted sex offender? It's not like he was a philanthropist with a good heart. I feel bad for the victims and their families. And it's even more crazy that Noam Chomsky advised Epstein to repair his image by associating himself with prominent figures like them... that's just weird. 
. That's not exactly "financial in nature" if you ask me 
. And what about all those documents that came out? Shouldn't we have seen some of that before? 
. We need more accountability from our heroes 
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. And it's not just her, Noam's been pretty open about his mistakes too... it shows they're both willing to take responsibility for their actions 
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. I get that Valeria and Noam thought they were helping Epstein out as philanthropists, but yeah... hindsight's 20/20 
. Their apology is a good start, but also makes me wonder how much they really knew about Epstein's shady side 
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I'm not buying that apology completely... I mean, Valeria Chomsky is apologizing now that we know more about Epstein's crimes, but what about when it was convenient for them to hang out with him? And that $20,000 check from Epstein doesn't exactly look like a harmless gesture either 
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anyway it's clear they didn't know much about epstein's shady past but still... i mean $20k from noam & a check 2 help w/ linguistic challenge?