Lily Tomlin arrested in D.C. during climate change protest led by costar Jane Fonda
Following in the footsteps of her Grace and Frankie costars, Lily Tomlin is the latest to get arrested outside the Capitol during climate change protests led by her Netflix series counterpart, Jane Fonda.
The arrest, which can be seen below, happened Friday during the 12th week of climate protests organized by Fonda. Tomlin was among a group of demonstrators who were advocating for the government to take action on a Green New Deal.
“Our movement has been unbelievably successful. Already we’ve taken $11 trillion out of banks that are underwriting fossil fuel expansion,” Tomlin told the crowd in an accompanying Twitter video.
.@LilyTomlin was just arrested because forests can’t wait! To maximize the climate benefit of forests, we must keep more forest landscapes intact, manage forests sustainably, and restore those that we have lost. #FireDrillFriday pic.twitter.com/xplGWayri4
— Fire Drill Fridays (@FireDrillFriday) December 27, 2019
Tomlin joins a group of Fonda’s celebrity friends that have been arrested supporting her climate change movement, dubbed Fire Drill Fridays. Sally Field, Ted Danson, Rosanna Arquette, Catherine Keener, Diane Lane, Paul Scheer, and fellow Grace and Frankie stars Sam Waterston and June Diane Raphael have all participated in the peaceful protests and been taken in by police as a result. Fonda herself has been arrested five times because of her efforts.
Fonda initially revealed she would be doing the “Fire Drill Friday” moniker in an interview with the Washington Post in October. In the announcement she said she was moving to Washington, D.C., saying “we’re going to engage in civil disobedience and we’re going to get arrested every Friday.”
The 82-year-old actress and activist has been open about how indigenous groups and young climate change activists including Greta Thunberg have inspired her actions, her support of the proposed Green New Deal, and her longterm plans to demonstrate every week into January 2020.
The Green New Deal is a climate proposal currently in limbo that was initially introduced by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts. The goal of the deal would be for the United States and its government to get away from fossil fuel energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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