Jane Fonda Golden Globes

Jane Fonda was honored with the Cecil B. deMille Award at last night’s Golden Globes.

This honorary award is given for “outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.” 

She has been nominated for five Academy Awards and won for the thriller Klute and the anti-war drama Coming Home.

She made 56 movies during her lengthy career and currently stars in the Netflix television series “Grace & Frankie.”

Fonda, known for her activism as much as for her acting, used her acceptance speech to push for more diversity in Hollywood.

Jane Fonda Takes Aim At Hollywood

Clad in an all white outfit, the 83-year-old Fonda asked Tinseltown to be introspective and be the change it encourages when it comes to inclusivity.

She wants more people of color to be represented in Hollywood.

Politely, she even pointed out the hypocrisy of the event that gave her this award.

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Her speech highlighted a glaring problem within the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which puts on the Golden Globes.

While much of Hollywood preaches diversity to the rest of the country, this organization hasn’t included a Black journalist for over 20 years.

Hollywood has traditionally had a different set of rules for itself than what it demands of others.

Fonda is asking for that to change. 

“[Fonda’s] undeniable talent has gained her the highest level of recognition,” said HFPA president Ali Sar in a statement. “While her professional life has taken many turns, her unwavering commitment to evoking change has remained.”

Hanoi Jane Says Hollywood Needs Diversity

Fonda’s activism has put her at odds with many Americans in the past, particularly during the Vietnam War.

She has dodged the label of “Hanoi Jane” since then. However, her career did not falter because of her anti-American viewpoints.

Now, she is taking aim at Hollywood, but doing it in a much different manner. She clearly has learned much from her prior mistakes. 

“Stories: They really, they really can change people,” Fonda told the entertainers. “But there’s a story we’ve been afraid to see and hear about ourselves in this industry. A story about which voices we respect and elevate — and which we tune out.”

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“A story about who’s offered a seat at the table and who is kept out of the rooms where decisions are made,” she continued. “So let’s all of us — including all the groups that decide who gets hired and what gets made and who wins awards — let’s all of us make an effort to expand that tent. So that everyone rises and everyone’s story has a chance to be seen and heard.”

Video of Jane Fonda’s acceptance speech can be watched in the tweeted video below. 

Ultimately, movie studios are businesses that are more concerned with their profit margin than anything else.

Diversity might come with demands for profitability. 

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