{"id":2062535,"date":"2025-10-01T17:34:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T17:34:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2062535"},"modified":"2025-10-01T17:34:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T17:34:21","slug":"jane-fonda-revives-mccarthy-era-free-speech-initiative","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/jane-fonda-revives-mccarthy-era-free-speech-initiative\/","title":{"rendered":"Jane Fonda revives McCarthy-era free speech initiative"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Jane Fonda continues to grow her legacy as one of the <\/span>most engaged activists<\/span><\/a> in Hollywood. The <\/span>Grace And Frankie<\/span><\/i><\/a> actor is relaunching the Committee for the First Amendment, a movement her father, Henry Fonda, was an early member of during the McCarthy era. The group was initially formed in the 1940s to protest the House Un-American Activities Committee, which accused many citizens, including top entertainers, of having communist ties. \u201cThe McCarthy Era ended when Americans from across the political spectrum finally came together and stood up for the principles in the Constitution against the forces of repression,\u201d the Fonda-led committee <\/span>wrote in a letter<\/span><\/a>. \u201cThose forces have returned. And it is our turn to stand together in defense of our constitutional rights.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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\u201cThe federal government is once again engaged in a coordinated campaign to silence critics in the government, the media, the judiciary, academia, and the entertainment industry,\u201d the letter continued. It didn\u2019t mention any specific examples, but we\u2019ve all seen them in the news. Last month, Disney-owned ABC <\/span>suspended <\/span>Jimmy Kimmel Live!<\/span><\/i><\/a> following the host\u2019s comments about the Republican response to Charlie Kirk\u2019s death, prompting outrage from <\/span>Hollywood<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>fellow late night hosts<\/span><\/a>, and even <\/span>Disney\u2019s former CEO<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>Journalists<\/span><\/a> and private citizens were also fired from their jobs for comments perceived as either celebrating the shooting or not mourning it properly. That\u2019s on top of the attacks Donald Trump has launched on the <\/span>Smithsonian<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>NPR and PBS<\/span><\/a>, individual artists like <\/span>Ariana Grande<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Bruce Springsteen<\/span><\/a>, and more since taking office in January.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe refuse to stand by and let that happen,\u201d the committee declared. \u201cFree speech and free expression are the inalienable rights of every American of all backgrounds and political beliefs \u2013 no matter how liberal or conservative you may be. The ability to criticize, question, protest, and even mock those in power is foundational to what America has always aspired to be.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane Fonda is joined by 550 celebrity signatories including Anne Hathaway, Barbara Streisand, Aaron Sorkin, Ethan Hawke, Celine Song, Ben Stiller, Elliot Page, Bill Maher, Julianna Moore, Cynthia Nixon, Damon Lindelof, Judd Apatow, Gracie Abrams, Hannah Einbinder, Jamie Lee Curtis, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Billie Eilish, Natalie Portman, and more. (You can check out the full list <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>.)<\/span><\/p>\n