Fairfax Accuser Meredith Watson Speaks Out in Op-Ed, Says She’s ‘Willing to Testify in Public’

Meredith Watson, who less than two weeks ago accused Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax of raping her when they were both Duke University students back in 2000, says she is now willing to publicly testify against him.

In an op-ed for the Washington Post, Watson laments a “culture of sexual assault, harassment, and the disempowerment of women” promoted by leaders and organizations that refuse to take action against suspects of crimes against women.

Watson accuses the Virginia General Assembly of refusing to take the “simple and responsible step” of holding a public hearing, and says she turned down offers from multiple politicians who said they would support her if she went on record about her rape for partisan purposes.

“Likewise, I have refused to make this a financial issue by suing for compensation,” Watson writes. “I have refused to make it a law-enforcement issue. Despite nearly 100 offers to be interviewed, I have refused to make my rape a media opportunity.” She adds that privacy was her main concern, along with not wanting to use her rape as a tool for ulterior motives.

But after a wave of public scrutiny, harassment, privacy violations, and denial from the public and even members of the media, Watson says she no longer feels that she has anything to lose by testifying in public.

“My privacy has already been violated, yet I am still willing to testify publicly under oath. Tyson has made the same offer,” says Watson, referring to Fairfax’s other sexual assault accuser, Vanessa Tyson. “Our plea to the Virginia General Assembly to require the same of Fairfax has been met with inaction.”