Unimaginative Republicans revive tired ‘Hanoi Jane’ insult in feeble pushback to Jane Fonda’s SAG speech

Jane Fonda has once again upset the “American patriots,” this time with her appearance at the SAG awards. The actress has been called everything under the sun, including an “anti-American communist,” a “traitor,” and of course, “Hanoi Jane,” all in a vain attempt at bullying her for speaking out against the current U.S. government.

The veteran actor was given a Lifetime Achievement Award recognizing her remarkable contributions throughout her career at the Screen Actors Guild ceremony on Sunday. Fonda gave a moving acceptance speech while also addressing the current political climate of the U.S. As you can imagine, this didn’t go over well with a lot of Republicans. Fonda focused on empathy and spoke about what being “woke” really meant during her speech while throwing shade at those in power.

“Make no mistake, empathy is not weak or ‘woke’ – and by the way, ‘woke’ just means you give a damn about other people… A whole lot of people are going to be really hurt by what is happening, what is coming our way.”

Of course, Republicans on X responded with all kinds of immature and frankly outdated insults because not only do they lack empathy, they also lack imagination.

Jane Fonda thinks woke means you “give a damn about people.”

Hey Hanoi Jane, did you “give a damn” about the American servicemen you betrayed in Vietnam?

Woke is just communist propaganda, so I'm not surprised that Jane proudly identifies with it.pic.twitter.com/TykY4CUyql

— Scarlett Johnson (@scarlett4kids) February 24, 2025

The “Hanoi Jane” epithet came up frequently.

Jane Fonda remains unchanged from her "Hanoi Jane" days she will always be an anti-American communist. pic.twitter.com/nImIB29tCq

— James Sears (@havemoremoney) February 24, 2025

Don’t they arrest Traitors anymore? #HanoiJane pic.twitter.com/jGlOWpH22k

— Mean Mr. Gene🇨🇦 (@MeanMrGene) February 24, 2025

All this really served to do was prove exactly what Fonda was saying. Empathy and unity are what the country needs right now, but somehow the very thought of this has prompted some very hateful people to start hurling insults at the 87-year-old. Not that someone like Jane Fonda would probably even care about a bunch of nobodies trash-talking her online, after all, the best they could come up with was “Hanoi Jane,” an insult from over 50 years ago.

What is the origin of the “Hanoi Jane” insult?

Fonda has always been a political activist. Ever since she’s had a platform, she’s used it to speak out against war, injustice, and the government in general. She gained notoriety with many during the 1970s, when she began loudly protesting against the Vietnam War. She joined the FTA show in 1971, which was an anti-Vietnam war road show. 

The following year, Fonda travelled to North Vietnam and appeared on numerous radio programs decrying the U.S. military policies in the country. During that trip she was also photographed sitting on an anti-aircraft gun in Hanoi. All of this earned her a great deal of outrage back in the U.S., with lawmakers calling her actions treasonous and giving her the nickname “Hanoi Jane.”

In the years since the Vietnam War, it’s become pretty clear that the foreign policy of the U.S. at that time was a mistake. Fonda wasn’t the only one at the time to see it that way, but she was certainly one of the loudest. To bring back the Hanoi Jane label in 2025 is ridiculous, but it just goes to show how little thought goes into insults from the MAGA crowd. The best ammunition they have against Fonda is a name from over fifty years ago.