Jane Fonda, Rosanna Arquette, Catherine Keener Arrested Inside Hart Senate Office Building

Jane Fonda on Friday was arrested for the fourth week in a row while she protested among a group in Washington, D.C. The actress will be spending one night in jail and will appear in D.C. Superior Court on Saturday, a rep for Fonda’s activism campaign stated. 

As she has in the previous weeks for her demonstrations dubbed “Fire Drill Fridays,” the actress had some famous faces in tow. 

Along with Fonda, actresses Rosanna Arquette and Catherine Keener, as well as a number of other demonstrators, were taken into custody. 

This week, instead of being arrested outside of the U.S. Capitol building, Fonda and the other demonstrators went into the Hart Senate office building, where she conducted an impromptu press conference. During that chat, Fonda said that the red coat she’s been wearing for her arrests is the last item of clothing she’ll ever buy.

A live stream showed Fonda, Arquette, Keener and other demonstrators forming a circle as they sat on the floor of the atrium of the building, with the crowd singing “We Shall Not Be Moved” and “This Land Is Your Land.” At one point, Fonda waved at people watching them from the balconies on higher floors. The crowd then began chanting, “What do we want? A Green New Deal. When do we want it? Now.” They also chanted, “In the ground, keep fossil fuels.” And, “Power to our children…. Power to the people.” 

“This is what democracy looks like,” the crowd chanted after the second song.

Capitol Police were heard telling people if they didn’t want to get arrested they needed to step outside the police perimeter. 

After roughly 15 minutes, police officers started arresting people. The officers started taking people into custody one by one, going around the circle, starting after Fonda and her famous friends. As people were arrested, the remaining protesters cheered and applauded.

Roughly 30 minutes after the sit-in began, Arquette was arrested, with the crowd cheering and the actress raising her left fist into the air before she was cuffed. Keener was arrested three minutes later, with the group shouting, “Yay, Catherine,” as she was led away from the circle and cuffed.

Three minutes after that, Fonda was helped up from the floor and was arrested as the crowd cheered. She waved her cuffed hands at the remaining two protesters.

According to Capitol Police communications director Eva Malecki, Fonda, Arquette, Keener and 43 other individuals were arrested. As in past weeks, the protesters were charged with crowding, obstructing or incommoding, this time after unlawful demonstration activity in the Hart Senate office building atrium.

This week’s demonstration was focused on women’s role in the fight against climate change.

“Efforts to turn back climate change can be exponentially enhanced if the needs and priorities of women were addressed. This is why the Green New Deal calls for inclusive representation of women in political and economic decision-making around environmental and climate policies. Women bear the brunt and women hold many of the solutions to the climate crisis,” said Fonda.

Fonda’s “Fire Drill Fridays” are designed to encourage Americans to take action to avert an irreversible climate disaster — which she says the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says will occur if atmospheric carbon dioxide warms the planet by 1.5 to 2 degrees Centigrade in the next 11 years — including supporting politicians who are in favor of the Green New Deal and backing the transition from fossil fuels to clean renewable energy.

Fonda’s weekly D.C. demonstrations, set to take place for four months, were inspired by the youth-led climate strikers. She will be joined by Hollywood stars, politicians, scientists, economists and people from affected communities each week.

Last week, Ted Danson was arrested with Fonda. In addition to bringing attention to her cause then, the iconic actress used the setting for the backdrop of a recorded thank-you as she was receiving the Stanley Kubrick Award for Excellence in Film at the annual BAFTA ceremony at the Beverly Hilton that same evening. 

The week before that, she was joined by fellow Grace and Frankie star Sam Waterston. He, too, was arrested. 

A political activist for decades, Fonda has made it clear she intends to get arrested as many times as it takes to get her point across. 

“I will be on the Capitol every Friday, rain or shine, inspired and emboldened by the incredible movement our youth have created,” Fonda previously wrote on her own website.

Nov. 1, 6:20 p.m.: Updated with official charges from the Capitol Police communications director and that Fonda will be spending the night in jail.