All Ears with Abigail Disney - Jane Fonda: Activism Saved Me

Jane Fonda: Activism Saved Me

04/13/23 • 43 min

Jane Fonda is a towering figure and an American legend. From Barbarella, to Klute, to 9 to 5, to her workout videos, she’s been gracing our screens for more than 50 years. And, though she may be best known for her role as an artist, surprisingly Jane says that’s not how she thinks of herself: “I consider myself, first and foremost, an activist.” And she has for quite some time.
For the final episode of Season four, Abby talks with Jane about the power of activism– work that Jane defines as building “people power in order to change systems that are wicked and evil.”
In recent years, to protest government inaction on climate change and the burning of fossil fuels, Jane launched Fire Drill Fridays. On select Fridays she can be found in Washington, DC leading thousands in civil disobedience. She’s also working to get “climate champions” elected to office via the Jane Fonda Climate Pac.
Jane reminds Abby that her activism started way back when she was a young actress who opposed the Vietnam War: “I was completely confused,” she admits, yet “it was hard to remain on the sidelines.” She describes the winding path she’s cut ever since.
As the conversation proceeds, Jane and Abby bond over how both find joy in activism. Jane describes the balm it has provided in her life. “One thousand percent activism saved me,” she declares. And, though there’s a lot to be angry, or to despair about, she ends with this rhetorical question: “Do you find–because I do–that when you take action, you get less depressed?”
You can follow Jane on Twitter @Janefonda, on Instagram @janefonda, and you can follow Jane’s climate activism on Twitter @janeclimatepac and @firedrillfridays, or you can go to janepac.com, or firedrillfridays.org.
EPISODE LINKS
The Village of Ben Suc (New Yorker)
Donald W. Duncan, 79, Ex-Green Beret and Early Critic of Vietnam War, Is Dead (NY Times)
Robert Kennedy Jr. (and Abigail Disney) Arrested While Protesting With Jane Fonda (The Hollywood Reporter)
On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal (Naomi Klein)
The evidence is clear: the time for action is now. We can halve emissions by 2030. (IPCC)
CO2 Emissions in 2022 (IEA)
Homeboy Industries (Homeboy Industries)

Previous Episode

Michael McAfee: There is No Shame in Caring for Everyone

What if we thought of America’s economic inequality as design flaws of policy, rather than the result of personal failings? And what would our policies look like if we included everyone in the design process? These are the questions that drive the work of Abby’s guest this week, Dr. Michael McAfee, president and CEO of PolicyLink. PolicyLink is a venerable think tank that works to create a more inclusive economy and democracy by lifting up communities that have been purposely and systematically kept out of the American dream.
No question things are out of whack: today around 100 million Americans–one in three–are economically insecure. That, says Michael, is a threat to our very democracy. It’s also a “wonderful opportunity” to redesign our policies–from housing, to wages, to education, to clean water.
And though there are those in America who are working to sow seeds of division, Michael says, “there is nothing to be ashamed of in caring for everyone.” Americans, he says, “need to stop focusing on what’s wrong. We’ve overbuilt that part of our brain. What we need to do now is spend every cell that we have in our brain focused on real practical solutions that can bridge us to where we want to go.”
Listening to Michael, it becomes clear that pragmatic optimism is his calling card: “This is an awakening moment that is painful as hell. And it's messy. And it's hurtful. There's a lot of beauty in it as well.”
Follow Michael McAfee on Twitter @MikeMcAfee06, on Instagram @Michael.McAfee, and on LinkedIn.
EPISODE LINKS
The Leading Edge of Collective Impact: Designing a Just and Fair Nation for All (SSIR Magazine)
Zip Code Destiny w/ Raj Chetty (NPR Hidden Brain)
The Case for Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates (The Atlantic)
New Study Shows CA Cost-of-Living So High that $180k is New “Middle Class”
When Private Equity Becomes Your Landlord (ProPublica)
Twilight of the NIMBY (NY Times)
Camp Lejeune's poisoned water has spawned thousands of claims. But victims are still waiting for closure (CNN)
Wells Fargo to pay $3.7 billion for illegal conduct that harmed consumers (Reuters)
More than 10-hour wait and long lines as early voting starts in Georgia | US elections 2020 (The Guardian)