Jane Fonda: ‘Woke Just Means You Give a Damn’ —Is She Right?

The icon, standing on stage at one of Hollywood’s most glamorous awards nights, delivered the speech of a lifetime. Spoiler: we approve.

Marrakech – Jane Fonda, who was honored with the prestigious SAG Life Achievement Award, reminded Hollywood — and honestly, the world — why empathy is the real power move.

“What we, actors, create is empathy. Our job is to understand another human being so profoundly that we can touch their souls,” she said, effortlessly making us all feel a little more introspective.

And then, with the kind of clarity that only comes from nearly nine decades of living (and fighting), she dropped this truth bomb: “Empathy is not weak or woke. By the way, woke just means you give a damn about other people.”

Can I get that embroidered on a tote bag?

Fonda’s speech wasn’t just a walk down memory lane — it was a call to arms.

She touched on the current political climate, the importance of unions, and the unsettling times we’re living in.

“A whole lot of people are going to be really hurt by what is happening,” she warned.

“Even if they’re of a different political persuasion, we need to not judge but listen from our hearts.”

An unapologetic trailblazer

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who presented the award, summed up Fonda’s essence in a way only she could: “For the love of God! Slow down, Jane. You’re making us all look like shit.”

She’s not wrong. Fonda’s been a Hollywood force for six decades, snagging Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes, and basically every accolade imaginable.

But beyond the statues, she’s been an activist, an agitator, and an unrelenting voice for justice — whether she’s getting arrested for climate change protests or standing up for workers’ rights.

And she’s still not done.

“I made one of my most successful movies in my 80s. And probably in my 90s, I’ll be doing my own stunts in an action movie,” she joked. Honestly? I believe her.

‘We are in our documentary moment’

One of the most striking moments of the night came when Fonda reminded the room (and, let’s be real, everyone watching at home) that history is happening right now.

“Have any of you ever watched a documentary of one of the great social movements — apartheid or civil rights or Stonewall — and ask yourself, would you have been brave enough to walk the bridge? We don’t have to wonder anymore. We are in our documentary moment. This is it, and it’s not a rehearsal!”

If that didn’t send chills down your spine, check your pulse.

The takeaway

Fonda left us with a message that was both sobering and hopeful.

“We must not isolate. We must stay in community. We must help the vulnerable. We must find ways to project an inspiriting vision of the future.”

In other words, it’s time to step up. The world is messy, the stakes are high, and the future is unwritten.

But as Jane Fonda just reminded us — if we care, if we show up — there will still be love, there will still be beauty, and there will still be an ocean of truth for us to swim in.

And honestly? That sounds like a future worth fighting for.