Jane Fonda, Robert De Niro lead star-studded New York concert defending First Amendment, accusing Trump and 'cowardly corporations'
At New York's Town Hall, Hollywood icons decried what they call systematic attacks on artistic expression and independent media under the Trump administration.
A historic committee revived
The Committee for the First Amendment was originally formed in 1947, at the height of the McCarthy era, to support the Hollywood Ten, a group of screenwriters blacklisted for suspected communist ties. Its founders included Henry Fonda, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and Danny Kaye. In October 2025, Jane Fonda revived the committee, citing a democracy 'in peril' after Donald Trump won a second term. Sunday's concert was its highest-profile public event to date.
- Committee formed to support the Hollywood Ten during the McCarthy era
- Jane Fonda revives the committee after Trump's second term win
- Rise Up, Sing Out concert held at Town Hall, New York
From the stage: accusations and calls to action
Fonda took aim at what she described as a systematic effort to silence artists. 'Right now, the government and its cronies [are] routinely violating its First Amendment to silence artists,' she said, listing the shuttering of the Kennedy Center, defunding of museums and the National Endowment of the Arts, book bans, and the cancellation of TV hosts who speak out. She did not name specific corporations, but blamed 'cowardly corporations' for allowing such actions. Fonda called for creative, nonviolent resistance, telling the audience: 'We stand together in defense of our right to free expression. They come for one of us, by God, they come for all of us.'
It's not about Democrat or Republican, or left or right. It's about right or wrong.
Corporate complicity and media consolidation
Fonda's remarks about a 'thinned-out kind of culture' came just two days after the U.S. Justice Department cleared Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of CNN. Critics worry that consolidation under the Trump-friendly Ellison family could interfere with editorial independence at the network founded by Fonda's late ex-husband Ted Turner. The actress warned that such trends would shrink the variety of viewpoints in news and culture.
De Niro's blunt rebuke
Robert De Niro opened with a joke about the White House UFC match held the same evening. He then called Trump 'a racist, misogynist, xenophobic tyrant' and, referencing the president's recent remark about not thinking about Americans' financial situation, the actor repeatedly shouted 'Shut the fuck up' as the audience chanted with him.
I don't love a country that's led by a racist, misogynist, xenophobic tyrant.
A nonpartisan plea
Fonda stressed that the First Amendment is for everyone, regardless of political affiliation. 'Those rights are for everyone, everyone. And we must defend them for everyone. Even if we don't agree with them,' she said. The evening also featured performances by Bette Midler, Patti Smith, and Rufus Wainwright, as well as appearances by Julia Roberts and other entertainers. The 2.5-hour variety show closed with a renewed call for the entertainment industry to resist 'anticipatory obedience' and unite in defense of free speech.
