Oscar-winning actress and progressive activist Jane Fonda has relaunched the Committee for the First Amendment, a free speech initiative that was launched in response to the rise of “McCarthyism” during the 1940s. 

Nearly 600 figures from the entertainment industry co-signed onto the newly relaunched committee, including Aaron Sorkin, Barbra Streisand, and Gracie Abrams.

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“The federal government is once again engaged in a coordinated campaign to silence critics in the government, the media, the judiciary, academia, and the entertainment industry,” the committee said in a statement. “We refuse to stand by and let that happen.”

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Jane Fonda’s father, Henry Fonda, spearheaded the original version of the Committee for the First Amendment in 1947 in response to the “Second Red Scare,” a period where there was an increasing fear of influence from communist ideology and the Soviet Union across the country.

This period is associated with former Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-WI), an anti-communist crusader who was known for claiming communists had infiltrated the U.S. government and other American institutions.

The Committee was initially created in an effort to defend free speech and oppose government activity, but at the time, it was met with backlash for its suspected ties to the Communist Party. 

Henry Fonda’s initiative was also supported by famous names in Hollywood at the time, including Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, and Gene Kelly. 

Fonda’s relaunch comes after late-night host Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air following pressure from President Donald Trump’s chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, over comments Kimmel made about Charlie Kirk’s assassination. 

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More than 400 celebrities called Kimmel’s suspension a “dark moment for freedom of speech in our nation” in an open letter released by the American Civil Liberties Union. Kimmel has since returned to the air, but the situation triggered conversations about free speech.

The announcement of the relaunch stated that they will “stand together-fiercely united-to defend free speech and expression from this assault.”

“This is not a partisan issue,” the statement said. “That is why we urge every American who cares about the First Amendment – the cornerstone of our democracy – and every artist around the globe who looks to the United States as a beacon of freedom to join us.” 

Jane Fonda told CNN’s Dana Bash that it is the “most frightening” moment of her life and that it is a “very chilling time.” 

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“We’ve faced attempts at autocracies before in the 20s and 30s … this is different, and we should all be very scared and the key is solidarity,” she told Bash. “That’s why I thought to resurrect the spirit of the committee that was started in the 50s and included my father.” 

“Our statement is that when they come for one of us they come for all of us … and we’re going to engage in creative nonviolent noncooperation,” she added.