Joker star Joaquin Phoenix was arrested while participating in actress and left-wing activist Jane Fonda’s climate change protest in the nation’s capital on Friday.
The actor was arrested at Fonda’s weekly protest — a protest which has led to the 9 to 5 star’s own arrest on more than one occasion. Actor Martin Sheen was also among those detained, according to TMZ.
Prior to his arrest, Phoenix spoke to the crowd of hundreds of protesters and urged them to alter their dietary habits in order to spare the planet of further destruction.
“The meat and dairy industry its the third leading cause of climate change and I think sometimes we wonder what can we do in this fight against climate change,” he explained. “And there’s something you can do today, right now, and tomorrow by making a choice about what you consume.”
Phoenix admitted that he committed a major environmental faux pas, flying to Washington, DC, to join Friday’s protest, but contended that it is simply one of those things that he cannot avoid. He suggested, however, that his eating habits are well within his purview.
“I struggle so much with what I can do at times, there are things that I can’t avoid. I flew a plane out here today, or last night rather,” Phoenix admitted. “But one thing that I can do is change my eating habits. Join me in that, and you as well Jane. Thank you so much for this opportunity.”
Phoenix called out his fellow celebrities and their private jet usage during the 77th Golden Globes last weekend, urging them to “make changes and sacrifices in our own lives” in order to effectively combat climate change.
“It’s great to vote, but sometimes we have to take that responsibility on ourselves and make changes and sacrifices in our own lives and I hope that we can do that,” he stated. “We don’t have to take private jets from Palm Springs to the awards, please. I’ll try to do better and I hope you will too.”
It remains unclear how he justifies his recent flight to D.C. with his call for fellow celebrities to “do better.”