Hollywood loves a sequel, and Jane Fonda’s reboot of the Cold War-era Committee for the First Amendment gained traction Thursday as the star-studded signatory list lengthened and the actress spoke more about their mission.
Fonda announced on Wednesday that she had launched a new iteration of the committee, initially created in 1947 to oppose the government’s crusade against Hollywood figures accused of having communist ties.
Fonda’s famous father and fellow Oscar winner Henry Fonda had been a member of the original committee, alongside a slew of A-listers like Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball.
Now, more than 550 actors, filmmakers, musicians, comedians and others in the entertainment industry have joined together for a similar cause to stand up against “forces of repression.”
Hundreds also supported comedian Jimmy Kimmel when Disney-owned ABC temporarily suspended his late-night “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” last month in response to what many perceived as an attack on free speech and mafioso-style meddling by FCC chair Brendan Carr.
“The 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,” the new committee said in its launch statement. “We refuse to stand by and let that happen. Free speech and free expression are the inalienable rights of every American of all backgrounds and political beliefs — 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.”
Speaking more about her decision to relaunch the committee, Fonda told Hollywood news outlet The Ankler that the goal is to “model creative, nonviolent, noncooperation methods of resisting authoritarianism.”
“Freedom is essential to artists. It’s in our blood. We can’t function without freedom of expression and of speech,” she said Thursday. “So let’s get together in large numbers and let’s find creative ways to ridicule the awfulness that is happening. So many of our fathers and grandfathers fought in wars to protect the rights that are now being taken away from us.”