February 11, 1971

Foster Auditorium

Coming up with a more polarizing figure than actress-activist Jane Fonda in the 1970s might be a tall order. Fonda was among the world’s best-known pop culture figures in when she came to the University of Alabama, where she spoke to thousands of students during an event for Black History Week. Her starring roles in award-winning motion pictures such as “Barbarella,” “Barefoot in the Park,” and “They Shoot Horses Don’t They?” peppered the Hollywood landscape before she won an Oscar in 1971 for “Klute.” When the UPC booked Fonda for an appearance in Tuscaloosa she commanded attention. She was speaking out on a regular basis about a wide range of controversial issues, including support for the Native American, and Black Power movements, and a vocal supporter of the Black Panthers. Fonda campaigned for jailed activist Angela Davis and Black political prisoners and was a staunch international advocate for women’s rights. At age 34 she was an ardent anti-war crusader who pulled no punches on the subject. Fonda’s appearance in Tuscaloosa predated her infamous trip to Hanoi in North Vietnam in July 1972 which galvanized an historic hostility among some veterans that has festered ever since. UPC member Joe Perry remembers it well. “I was with Phillip Norris (of the UPC) when we picked up Jane Fonda and the guy she had with her at the University of Alabama-Huntsville and brought her to Tuscaloosa.” In those years flying from Huntsville to Tuscaloosa included a trip through Atlanta to change planes. Even the slightest delay could mean a missed connection and a night in Atlanta.  “So, we went to pick up Jane Fonda in Phil's girlfriend's Volkswagen van.” Her talk was spicey, especially for a Southern university such as Alabama. But it was profound. Will Ferniany, a former UPC president from 1972-73, said Fonda made some bold predictions about several things, including the possibility of unmanned aircraft dropping bombs on their enemies. As it turns out, her vision of “drones” turned out to be correct.