Jane Fonda speaks onstage at a Committee for the First Amendment event on March 27 in Washington, D.C. Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for Committee for the First Amendment The Committee for the First Amendment, an activist collective of artists and cultural leaders founded by Jane Fonda, is hosting Rise Up, Sing Out: A Concert for the First Amendment with a starry lineup in NYC.
The event — set for June 14, which is Flag Day — will feature live performances and appearances by Fonda, Bette Midler, Joy Reid, Patti Smith, Rufus Wainwright, Sasha Allen and Broadway Inspirational Voices for a 90-minute celebration.
“Music has long been a tool to stand up to authoritarianism, and I am honored to spend the evening with these fiercely committed, talented, and brilliant people to celebrate our First Amendment rights,” Fonda said in a statement. “As we continue to watch bad faith leaders take more and more power, it is critical that we gather together, raise our voices collectively, and stand united against this administration — and have some fun while doing it.”
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The event will be streamed online for free, with national partner organizations and local civic groups hosting watch parties all around the country. For those looking to attend in person, tickets start at $49 and can be purchased on Ticketmaster or via the concert website. All proceeds from the concert will go to support the work of the Committee for the First Amendment.
“Music has always been the language of resistance. When this administration comes for our freedoms, music is how we remember who we are and what we’re fighting for,” Wainwright said of the event. “Rise Up, Sing Out is what this moment demands. So let’s come together, raise our voices and remind them exactly who this country belongs to.”
The Committee for the First Amendment is a group of artists and storytellers standing together to defend free expression against government repression and industry complicity, launched in October with a statement from Fonda and more than 550 supporters from across Hollywood. The Committee draws inspiration from the original Committee for the First Amendment, when artists like Lucille Ball, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Jane’s father, Henry Fonda, stood up to government attacks during the McCarthy era.
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