Hundreds of young men were sexually abused by Dr. Richard Strauss during his time at Ohio State University, in one of the most shocking and far-reaching sex abuse scandals in U.S. sports history. Now, powerful new allegations in the HBO documentary Surviving Ohio State raise disturbing questions about who knew—and who failed to act.

Among those named is Rep. Jim Jordan, who served as an assistant wrestling coach at OSU during Strauss’s tenure. Multiple former wrestlers allege that Jordan was told about Strauss’s behavior, and worse, that he responded with indifference—or even attempted to silence survivors when the truth threatened to surface. These are not anonymous claims. They come from former athletes and officials, including a respected referee who says he told Jordan directly that Strauss had assaulted him. Jordan’s response, according to the witness: “It’s Strauss. You know what he does.”

To this day, Jim Jordan has denied all knowledge of the abuse and declined to participate in the documentary. But survivors are speaking out, and their stories deserve to be taken seriously.

We are calling on the U.S. House Ethics Committee to open an official investigation into Rep. Jordan’s alleged failure to report sexual abuse and any efforts to dissuade witnesses. Survivors were silenced for too long. If a sitting member of Congress ignored or enabled systemic abuse, the public has a right to know.

Accountability doesn’t end with the abuser. It extends to those who stood by and did nothing. Congress must act—because survivors deserve more than apologies. They deserve truth and justice.
 
 
 
Photo: AP via The Independent