EXCLUSIVE: The question leaves Jane Fonda silent for a long moment, chic sepia-hued sunglasses perched delicately on her nose.
She runs her fingers through her short grey hair, one gold ring glittering on her left hand.
It’s International Women’s Day and 9Honey has just asked what wisdom she wants to pass on to the next generation of young women – and what wisdom she would give a younger version of herself, if she could. The answers are the same.
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“Don’t give up. It’s going to get better,” the 87-year-old star says emphatically.
“It’s so hard to be young. It was hard back in the day, when I was young in the ’40s and ’50s. Today, it’s even much harder.
“I’m so sorry that you have to go through the tough period.”
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Born in 1937, the beloved American actress became a political activist in the ’60s and has been championing women’s rights for more than 50 years.
She was instrumental in establishing the Hollywood Women’s Political Committee (HWPC) in 1984, she opened the Jane Fonda Center for Adolescent Reproductive Health in 2001, and she cofounded the Women’s Media Center in 2006.
Fonda has spoken out against rape and abuse, has uplifted the voice of marginalised women from BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, and considers herself a proud feminist.
For most of her life, she’s worked to make Hollywood and the world at large a better place for young women. And the work’s not done yet.
That’s why it’s so important the next generation of women rise to the challenge, even when it’s hard.
”One of the most important things happening globally right now is young people are rising up to protest the climate crisis, and the rise of extremism, and the rise of inequity,” she says.
“There’s so many things that that kids are being harmed by today, and when they rise up and protest, it really, really, really makes a difference.”
The world can be a confronting place for young women, especially with women’s rights under threat from far-right groups and the epidemic of violence against women right now.
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Even the seemingly simple things – having a career, starting a family – can feel overwhelming for young women in a modern world where they’re told they can have it all, but only if they work hard enough.
“It’s hard because you don’t know- who am I supposed to be? Who do I have to meet? What do I have to do? What school should I go to? What classes should I take?” Fonda says, reflective.
“There’s so many questions and you don’t yet know who you are. Once you’re older – not when you’re in your 40s, but when you’re really inside old age – it’s not frightening at all.
“Because you have that whole life behind you that you can learn from.”
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Now well into her 80s, Fonda has the blessing of hindsight and it’s granted her the kind of wisdom she never could have dreamed of at 30, 40, or even 50.
It’s that very wisdom she wants to share with the women coming up in the world on this International Women’s Day.
Looking back on her incredible life, from her two Academy Awards, to her seven Golden Globe Awards, her iconic ’80s exercise tapes, and her achievements as an activist, Fonda’s advice for the next generation is simple.
It’s the same thing she’d tell her younger self if she got the chance.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff,” she says with a smile, “And don’t give up when you’re young.”
See Jane Fonda at Wanderlust True North this June. Melbourne – Thursday 12th June at 7pm. Tickets from Ticketmaster. Sydney – Sunday 15th June at 7pm. Tickets from Ticketek. Tickets from $79.
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