Jane Fonda to host counter celebration opposite Trump's UFC event

As a cage match is set to unfold on the South Lawn of the White House this Sunday, marking Donald Trump’s 80th birthday and initiating celebrations for the nation's 250th anniversary, actor and activist Jane Fonda will host a contrasting event from New York City.

Fonda’s advocacy group, the Committee for the First Amendment, is staging a concert featuring prominent actors, musicians, and public figures. The event aims to champion free speech and democracy – principles Fonda asserts have faced significant challenges during Trump's presidency.

"This is our documentary moment," Fonda told Reuters in an interview. "History is going to write about this, and I don't want to be on the side of people who said, ‘Oh my God, things are so bad, what am I going to do?’ No. I want to be out in the front."

The "Rise Up, Sing Out" concert, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EDT (23:30 GMT) on Sunday, will showcase performances and appearances from a stellar line-up including Julia Roberts, Lily Gladstone, Bette Midler, Patti Smith, and Rufus Wainwright. The event will take place at The Town Hall, a historic venue founded by suffragists a century ago, and will be accessible via livestream.

Fonda, 88, boasts a long and distinguished history of activism. Her work spans from advocating for Native Americans and the Black Panthers in the 1960s to protesting the Vietnam War in the 1970s, a period during which she earned the moniker "Hanoi Jane" following a controversial visit to North Vietnam in 1972. She later expressed regret for a photograph showing her on an anti-aircraft gun.

In more recent years, the Oscar-winning actor has dedicated her efforts to climate activism, leading to multiple arrests during her "Fire Drill Fridays" protests in Washington, D.C. A new documentary, Gaslit, premiering this Friday, follows Fonda as she journeys through Texas and Louisiana to highlight the environmental and health consequences of oil and gas extraction.

Fonda has a history of political activism Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

"Whole communities have been razed because we insist on drilling for oil and fracked methane gas that we're shipping around the world, that is killing people and nature and animals, and it's got to stop," said Fonda, who attributes the weakening of environmental regulations to the Trump administration.

Beyond environmental concerns, Fonda has also urged federal and state regulators to block the proposed \$110 billion merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery. While personally fond of Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison, Fonda voiced concerns over concessions he made to the Federal Communications Commission to secure approval for Skydance’s acquisition of Paramount.

"The lifeblood of creativity is going out the window in order to satisfy these autocrats in the White House," she stated. Ellison, however, has maintained that the combined entity would invest in high-quality content, releasing 30 films annually, thereby benefiting Hollywood’s creative community.

Fonda revived the Committee for the First Amendment in October, citing a perceived increase in authoritarian practices and threats to free speech. The group was originally established by her father, actor Henry Fonda, in 1947, in response to Hollywood figures being summoned to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee.

"We are the storytellers, we are the artists," Fonda concluded. "Without the First Amendment, we can't exist."