On her 82nd birthday, Jane Fonda was arrested. Approaching the capitol steps, Fonda was grabbed
by the capitol police and put into handcuffs. But Fonda wasn’t alone. She and 138 other
people were arrested, and they were all there for a reason: the U.S. government’s dismal
response to the climate crisis. This kind of celebrity direct action is rare, and especially
among the Hollywood elite who are advocating for climate action as their new pet cause.
(Play some clips), And because of this it’s more important than ever to dive into the
celebritization of the climate crisis. Today we’re going to figure out if celebrity advocacy
is actually working as well as determine who is actually doing the work to build the movements
we need to effectively foster a just transition.
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Are Celebrities Influencing Climate Action? Before we dive into the specifics of celebrity
climate action culture, we need to first understand if their advocacy is even effective. The answer
is… it’s complicated. Indeed, as one paper puts it, celebrities like Al Gore and Leonardo
DiCaprio have become the new polar bears, assuming the imagery of the new harbingers
of climate change. But the ramifications of celebrity influence on various environmental
issues can differ wildly. With their widely watched personas comes some amount of power
as well as the filtering of political ideas and theories of change through that persona.
Essentially, celebrities have become nodes through which many people learn about climate
issues or perhaps are inspired to take action. So the result of this celebrity influence
is very much dependent on the celebrity’s politics. Some figureheads like Prince Phillip
and David Attenborough champion false ideas of overpopulation and propose neoliberal and
eugenicist solutions, while others, like Jane Fonda push for movement-based direct-action
to end fossil fuel extraction. The spectrum of celebrity solutions to the climate crisis
is almost as broad as the number of climate celebrities. But the way celebrities relate
to movements, usually as figureheads rather than as comrades, perpetuates a “heroic
individual” narrative that runs counter l to anti-hierarchical, grassroots movement
philosophies.
The Personal is Hypocritical? With every cry for climate action from a celebrity,
comes an equal cry of hypocrisy. This is due, in part, because of the nature of celebrity
and our desire for heroic leaders. It positions celebrities as individuals, which means it’s
easy to delegitimize climate advocacy by attacking the personal actions of celebrities. After
all, cries of hypocrisy are extremely effective tools of dismantling movements, especially
those focused on the climate crisis. If you somehow have to already have shed all your
fossil fuel use in order to start the work of shedding fossil fuels, then very few people
will ever take action. But here’s the thing, while being mindful of how we use resources
and, for those of us in wealthy countries or who have personal wealth, reducing our
use of resources is important, it should never be a prerequisite to dismantling the systems
of capitalism and environmental destruction. In fact BP invented the carbon footprint so
people would think their own lifestyles were to blame and not the exploitative capitalist
actions of the 100 companies that emit 71% of the world’s greenhouse gasses. Paying
attention to our own or a celebrity’s carbon footprints will never solve climate change
as long as fossil fuel companies continue to build pipelines and pump oil and gas out
of the ground. As journalist David Roberts puts it, Leonardo DiCaprio’s carbon footprint
is a “fart in the wind” compared to major corporations and fossil fuel companies. That
being said, Hollywood elites are still elites. Hopping around on private jets, partying on
yachts, and lounging in lavish mansions is unethical in a world where whole nations are
getting swallowed up by sea level rise, and millions are starving. It’s hard to take
celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio or Al Gore seriously when they seem so disconnected from
the masses. A world without climate change and inequality means a world without yachts
or private jets. Much like Kim Kardashian driving fashion trends, celebrities have the
power to drive climate action trends, and their personal actions can signal possible
avenues of change. So, let’s look at both Leonardo DiCaprio and Jane Fonda in order
to understand two very different celebrity approaches to climate action.
The DiCaprio Way: After leaning over the bow of the Titanic
declaring himself king of the world, Leonardo DiCaprio decided to do something about that
world. So, like most rich people he started a donor-advised fund, and he called it The
Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Since 1998 DiCaprio’s foundation has handed out $100 million in
grants to over 200 projects. But if you’ve watched my video on billionaires you’ll
know this isn’t the whole story. While $100 million is great for the cause, DiCaprio is
often reaping the benefits both in terms of tax dodging and reputation. The watchdog group,
Charity Watch, decried the lack of transparency of the fund, writing that the Leonardo DiCaprio
Foundation uses its donor advised fund status to “avoid the financial and other transparency
requirements that must be met by stand-alone charities.” That being said, DiCaprio has
made a number of speeches and produced films calling attention to the climate crisis. But
like many of his elite friends, his framing of the crisis and the solutions he proposes
often veer on the side of quick techno-fixes that ignore the systemic drivers of climate
change like capitalism. In short, DiCaprio certainly isn’t doing terribly compared
to the actions of other celebrities, but it’s not possible for the multimillion dollar galas
he throws and flying around on private jets to address the root causes of climate change.
If anything, they highlight the importance of finding another way to wield celebrity
and fame to build movements and action. Which is where Jane Fonda comes in.
The Fonda Way: In the fall of 2019, Fonda decided to turn
her climate despair into action. She set up a base in a Washington DC hotel room near
the White House and for 4 months she held weekly climate rallies on the doorstep of
the U.S. government, often ending in arrests. Unlike big ticket galas or UN speeches, Fonda
was wielding her fame and privilege to build a movement. Using the shocking headlines of
her multiple arrests, as well as enticing her celebrity friends like Sally Fields and
Lily Tomlin, Fonda grounded climate action in direct action. At the same time, Fonda
seems to be trying to take a back seat, offering her podium to indigenous activists and activists
of color. In essence, Fonda knows that where she goes headlines will follow, so she seems
to be using that spotlight to illuminate the real work of those at the frontlines of the
climate struggle. Like her recent appearance at the Line 3 protests. At the end of the
day, however, no one person will save us from climate catastrophe. We all need to lower
our expectations about the impact that celebrities can have on movements. At best, they can actually
be part of a movement, like anyone else, and use their celebrity to raise funds for democratic
distribution, create media to shift mainstream narratives about injustice, or get attention
on specific campaigns. At worst, they can use shady fundraising methods for tax breaks
and good PR.
Heroes and Movements: The true heroes are not just one person, they
are movements across the world blocking fossil fuel infrastructure, divesting from capitalist
exploitation, and building communities based in abundance. The water protectors and the
hundreds of people blocking the destructive progress of Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline are
the ones who we should be paying attention to. These are the people who, for over 500
years, have fought the systems of exploitation that now fuels the climate crisis. The Hollywood
elite can certainly do their part by supporting and lifting up these movements, but the capitalist-imperialist
system that underpins our climate crisis will never fall at the hands of the famous. They’re
famous because of that system. Celebrities need to get their hands dirty, listen to those
that have known the land for thousands of years, and struggle directly for a world where
land, air, and life are deeply treasured.
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