Radical left-wing actress and activist Jane Fonda led her tenth consecutive climate-change protest in Washington, D.C. on Friday, demanding fast passage of the Green New Deal and an end to all new fossil fuel exploration and drilling.
Protestors including fellow Hollywood star Sally Field gathered at the U.S. Capitol building to seek a “just transition” for workers whose jobs will be impacted by the the move away from fossil fuels.
Fonda helped kick off the rally by claiming that a transition to green energy will create million of jobs.
“The climate emergency requires us to rapidly transform our energy system and key industrial sectors in ways that protect workers and impacted communities,” the actress said in a speech to fellow protestors.
“Transforming our industrial base and energy systems can and will creation millions of good jobs. But we must ensure that they guarantee workers a living wage, a union wage, full benefits, a safe work place, and that they have a say in designing and full rights to collective bargaining.”
A just transition will include wage guarantees for displaced workers, pension guarantees, health insurance for families & additional financial support for those who choose to relocate or acquire the skills necessary for making the transition. Thanks @Janefonda #FireDrillFriday pic.twitter.com/5KzImJMu1x
— Fire Drill Fridays (@FireDrillFriday) December 13, 2019
Norma Rae actress Sally Field was among those arrested Friday on the steps of the Capitol building.
Thank you to @sally_field who was just arrested on the US Capitol steps with #FireDrillFriday taking action demanding a just transition! pic.twitter.com/T54vKME0Ve
— Fire Drill Fridays (@FireDrillFriday) December 13, 2019
Earlier in the day, Field spoke to protestors about her reason for joining Fonda’s weekly “Fire Drill Friday” protests.
“We cannot sit back in our comfort zones, on our couches and wonder what can we do? WE can get out and do something,” she said. “In other countries it’s being done. In Norway, in France, in Germany, it’s being done.”
Field noted that the communities portrayed in the 1979 movie Norma Rae were ultimately devastated when unionization prompted manufacturers to relocate overseas in search of cheaper labor.
The actress is the latest star to join Fonda in her weekly protests. Past participants include Rosanna Arquette, Diane Lane, Piper Perabo, Sam Waterston, and Ted Danson.
Jane Fonda and her fellow protestors are demanding “immediate action” on the Green New Deal — the legislation sponsored by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) that would effectively eliminate fossil fuels from the U.S. economy.
“We need immediate action for a Green New Deal,” Fonda’s group said in an announcement this week. The group is also demanding a 50 percent cut in all carbon emissions by 2030, and no new exploration or drilling for fossil fuels.
Fonda is set to speak at a National Press Club Headliners luncheon on Tuesday about her environmental activism, which was inspired by 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg.
The 81-year-old actress has pledged to continue protesting every Friday through January, after which she is expected to resume production on the final season of her Netflix sitcom Grace & Frankie.
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