As protesters filled streets around the world Friday for a youth-led climate strike, more than three dozen people were arrested at the U.S. Capitol for Jane Fonda’s weekly Fire Drill Friday civil disobedience demonstration, which the actress and activist launched last month.
Each week, Fonda—along with friends from Hollywood and climate campaigners—holds a Thursday night teach-in followed by a Friday protest in Washington, D.C. The focus of this week’s #FireDrillFriday events was food justice.
Fonda, whose civil disobedience series was inspired by teen climate activist Greta Thunberg, was joined Friday by her grandchildren Malcolm and Viva; actors Iain Armitage and Paul Scheer; and various activists who spoke about how food and farming are both affected by and can be used to combat the climate emergency.
Jim Goodman of the National Family Farm Coalition, who also participated in this week’s teach-in, delivered a speech Friday before the action that led to arrests.
“It’s time for an agriculture that protects and restores the biodiversity of our land and the oceans; an agriculture that promotes organic farming, based on healthy soil, healthy food, and healthy people; an agriculture that respects the rights of farmers, farmworkers, and of nature,” he said.
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Goodman called for “a food system controlled by farmers and the people we feed, not corporate profit margins or the global economy.” He also highlighted the importance of respecting the rights of Indigenous people around the world—one of the key demands of the Fire Drill Fridays movement.
Fonda, in her speech, tied the food justice and agriculture theme to last week’s focus, water, as well as a forthcoming focus, forests:
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