Hundreds of celebrities relaunch a McCarthy-era committee to defend free speech

[demmiblue]

On Wednesday, over 550 celebrities relaunched a group first organized during the post-World War II Red Scare: the Committee for the First Amendment. Their intent is to stand up in what they call a "defense of our constitutional rights," adding: "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 current group is headlined by actor and activist Jane Fonda — whose father, actor Henry Fonda, was one of the early members of the first Committee for the First Amendment, which was founded in the 1940s to oppose the infamous House Un-American Activities Committee, through which the federal government accused many top entertainers of being communists or communist sympathizers and derailed their careers.

Other members of the newly re-formed committee include filmmakers Spike Lee, Barry Jenkins, J.J. Abrams, Patty Jenkins, Aaron Sorkin and Judd Apatow; TV show creator Quinta Brunson; musicians Barbra Streisand, John Legend, Janelle Monáe, Gracie Abrams and Billie Eilish; comedians Tiffany Haddish and Nikki Glaser; as well as actors Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, Kerry Washington, Pedro Pascal, Natalie Portman, Viola Davis and Ben Stiller. Another signatory is actor Fran Drescher, who last month ended a term as the president of the SAG-AFTRA union, whose membership includes NPR's journalists.

In the letter, the authors write: "This Committee was initially created during the McCarthy Era, a dark time when the federal government repressed and persecuted American citizens for their political beliefs. They targeted elected officials, government employees, academics, and artists. They were blacklisted, harassed, silenced, and even imprisoned. The 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."

https://www.npr.org/2025/10/01/nx-s1-5559223/committee-for-the-first-amendment-jane-fonda-billie-eilish-pedro-pascal-gracie-abrams

[LetMyPeopleVote]

1. MaddowBlog-Trump White House adds Jane Fonda to its growing list of celebrity targets

Whether Trump realizes this or not, the more he and his team try to fight celebrities, the smaller and more pitiful the White House appears.

Trump White House adds Jane Fonda to its growing list of celebrity targets www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

— 𝙒𝙚𝙨 𝙍𝙪𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙡🦋📚 (@wesruss.bsky.social) 2025-10-02T16:24:53.275Z

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-white-house-adds-jane-fonda-growing-list-celebrity-targets-rcna235165

In 1947, as Republican Sen. Joe McCarthy helped fuel a notorious “red scare,” the Committee for the First Amendment was formed to push back against the tide. Academy Award winner Henry Fonda, a few years after his decorated World War II military service, was among the committee’s earliest and most prominent members.

Nearly eight decades later, his daughter is helping carry a very similar torch. The Associated Press reported:

Drawing upon her personal and political past, Jane Fonda has revived an activist group from the Cold War era that was backed by her father and fellow Oscar winner, Henry Fonda. Jane Fonda announced she had launched a 21st century incarnation of the Committee for the First Amendment, originally formed in 1947 in response to Congressional hearings aimed against screenwriters and directors — notably the so-called ‘Hollywood Ten’ — and their alleged Communist ties. Signers of the new organization’s mission statement include Florence Pugh, Sean Penn, Billie Eilish, Pedro Pascal and hundreds of others.

“I’m 87 years old. I’ve seen war, repression, protest, and backlash. I’ve been celebrated, and I’ve been branded an enemy of the state. But I can tell you this: this is the most frightening moment of my life,” Fonda wrote in a letter inviting her peers to join the re-established group. “When I feel scared, I look to history. I wish there were a secret playbook with all the answers — but there never has been. The only thing that has ever worked — time and time again — is solidarity: binding together, finding bravery in numbers too big to ignore, and standing up for one another.”......

In May, the president demanded investigations into Bruce Springsteen, Beyoncé, Oprah Winfrey and Bono. A week earlier, when Trump was still in the midst of a Middle East trip, the Republican set aside some time to suggest that Taylor Swift is no longer “hot,” due entirely to his criticisms of the pop star.

Soon after, the White House took aim at “South Park,” as the president continued to rail against late-night comedians.

Whether Trump realizes this or not, the more he and his team try to fight celebrities, the more the White House appears small and pitiful. For all the effort Republicans invest in making the president out to be some powerful colossus, what we’re left with is a flailing man whose operation feels compelled to whine about actors, cartoons and late-night monologues.