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Dear Free Software Supporter,

Just like that, the fortieth anniversary celebration of the [Free
Software Foundation][1] (FSF) has come and gone. For forty years, the
FSF has been creating the world we want to see -- a world where
people, not corporations, control the technology they use. What began
as a simple [call for people][2] to stand up for their diminishing
freedom in computing has evolved into a powerful global force at the
core of most technology we use today.

[1]: [link removed]
[2]: [link removed]

The founding principle of the FSF, **freedom**, has been criticized
over the years. Free software has always served technological
progress, and it is not in spite of its focus on freedom, but
*because* of it, that this work is now powering much of our daily
computing, forty years after the initial free software programs were
released.

The FSF is not just a voice for our digital freedoms -- we created the
philosophical foundation, built the software, and wrote the strong
copyleft license to protect it. We have shaped it all these years with
the work we do in our advocacy, education, copyleft, and technical
work. In these last few months alone:

* We celebrated forty years of defending user rights [in person][3]
with the community as well as online. It was a day full of
forward-focused talks and panels from our founding and newest board
members; prominent representatives of organizations focused on digital
freedoms who discussed [privacy, surveillance][4], and [mobile phone
applications][5]; and exceptional volunteers and local organizers. All
these different voices help reaffirm our strength and limitless
potential as a community.

* We launched a groundbreaking project in mobile phone freedom, where
most of current-day computing is done. There is a wide range of
different kinds of nonfree software that commonly appears in even the
most progressive operating systems that run free software on mobile
phones. [Librephone][6] is our project for working towards
reverse-engineering that software. This work will help us guarantee
software freedom even as where we do our computing changes.

* We have made significant progress in defining our [free machine
learning criteria][7], have shared it with important community
members, and are processing the feedback we are receiving. We deeply
appreciate the different perspectives and suggestions which help us be
informed and ground our work in reality, skill, and shared knowledge.

* We continue to invest in our hardware and explore free software
solutions to manage the traffic abuse on our servers through the
myriad [DDOS and machine learning crawling attacks][8] we have been
experiencing for over a year now.

[3]: [link removed]
[4]: [link removed]
[5]: [link removed]
[6]: [link removed]
[7]: [link removed]
[8]: [link removed]

On top of all this, we also elected a new FSF president. Ian Kelling
is ready to take on any challenges in the decades to come. I
personally asked him some questions in the latest edition of our *Free
Software Bulletin,* which is on its way to associate members globally,
and the online version will be posted soon.

The free software movement is powered by people like you, individuals
who believe that software should respect our freedom and community.
Our software freedom is threatened every day by corporations with
billion-dollar budgets which have happily extracted the work of others
to create their fortune, but in return exploit their users. Success
has never been guaranteed, but we are used to working against all
odds, with your help.


Your support has helped us work toward creating the world we want to
see. We know not everyone is in a position to, but if you can, can you
support our efforts by [donating to the FSF][11]? If 10% of people
reading this message donate $12 US (one month's worth of [associate
member dues][12], we will achieve our goal of $400,000 US and increase
our strength significantly.

[11]: [link removed]
[12]: [link removed]


Political pressures, financial constraints, and operational
difficulties test our organization and we cannot face them alone. A
lot has changed in forty years, our global movement is growing, but if
we don't preserve and spread our message, Big Tech will erase all that
we have achieved. The FSF continues to stand steadfast by our mission
and we lead by example. With your help, we can shape a future where
technology serves everyone.

Yours in freedom,

Zoë Kooyman
Executive Director
--
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Sent from the Free Software Foundation,

31 Milk Street
# 960789
Boston, Massachusetts 02196
United States


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