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Dear Free Software Supporter,
On October 9th, 2020, we ended the Free Software
Foundation's (FSF) birthday week with an [online anniversary
event][0] featuring both live and prerecorded segments. We were
honored to have guests from different free software fields join
us live for the celebration of the [coral anniversary][1], and we
were so thankful to receive prerecorded birthday messages from
people in every corner of the world.
[0]: [link removed]
[1]: [link removed]
Many supporters asked us after the birthday celebration was over
if the exciting sessions we hosted would be available online. So
many community members made such valuable and fascinating
contributions, and we didn't want you to miss out! Plus, the free
software community is a global one, and between international
members and American members who couldn't take time out of a work
day, there are plenty of people who wanted to participate but
weren't able.
So we've put the videos on our [MediaGoblin instance][2], and
what's more, you can also find these and other FSF videos on
[PeerTube][3]! [One of the sessions][4] in our birthday
celebration featured [Framasoft][5] cofounder Pouhiou, as well as
[Eda Nano][6], board member of [April][7] and member of [La
Quadrature Du Net][8], and since PeerTube is a Framasoft project,
it was the one of the central topics of the conversation.
[2]: [link removed]
[3]: [link removed]
[4]: [link removed]
[5]: [link removed]
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[8]: [link removed]
[PeerTube][9] is a decentralized, federated video platform
powered by ActivityPub and WebTorrent. Thanks to Framasoft, the
FSF now has a PeerTube account, hosted on the [FramaTube
instance][10]. Besides our FSF35 birthday videos, we posted our
[series of animated videos][11] there as well.
[9]: [link removed]
[10]: [link removed]
[11]: [link removed]
Our talk with Pouhiou and Eda also addressed activism in France,
how French free software organizations work together, and about
how Framasoft develops free software that fulfills the needs of
users. Framasoft is determined to make and improve technology to
actually free users, instead of focusing on artificially
increasing the use of PeerTube through advertising and by
tricking users into consumption that feeds the bottom
line. PeerTube is a stellar example that we look forward to
continuing to use creatively to spread the word about free
software.
[In another session][12], artist and illustrator David Revoy
joined us to talk about the [special design][13] he made to help us
celebrate our thirty-fifth anniversary. After a conversation about how he
transitioned to free software, and an introduction into the free
software tools he uses to make his spellbinding art and his recently
released physical [*Pepper & Carrot* comics][14], he took us
through the step by step process of how he came to the final
design of the beautiful FSF35 image, which was inspired by the
collaborative nature of a coral reef.
[12]: [link removed]
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[14]: [link removed]
The day's presentations also included prerecorded messages from
the FSF's president [Geoff Knauth][15], our executive director
[John Sullivan][16], and our founder [Richard Stallman][17]. All
three sessions have such valuable messages, both for their
different takes and anecdotes on how we got to where we are, as
well as for the important takeaways and lessons moving
forward. These core activists have been at the center of carrying
out the FSF's mission for the past thirty-five years, and the
knowledge and experience they gained will guide us into the
future.
[15]: [link removed]
[16]: [link removed]
[17]: [link removed]
We also uploaded the two compilations of [prerecorded
messages][18] we received from [community members congratulating
the FSF][19]. Celebrated author and [past LibrePlanet
keynote][20] Cory Doctorow, [Free Software Foundation
Europe (FSFE)][21] president Matthias Kirschner, and Frédéric
Couchet and Étienne Gonnu from [April][22] were among some of the
speakers that were featured in these sections.
[18]: [link removed]
[19]: [link removed]
[20]: [link removed]
[21]: [link removed]
[22]: [link removed]
No matter where you are located in the world, you can help the
fight for free software by organizing locally, and in the [final
conversation][23] of the day, we discussed a range of success
stories, tips, ideas, and experiences from seasoned free software
activists connected to both large and smaller scale
organizations. To emphasize the importance of local activism,
the FSF announced during this talk that financial support for
local free software organizations everywhere will be made available as soon as
we are able to organize in-person events again.
[23]: [link removed]
Free software is an issue that speaks to people well beyond those
who we are able to connect to through the wonderful community
that has been established over the last thirty-five years. After
decades of political complacency, we now see more people than
ever standing up for *themselves* and spreading awareness of how
proprietary software affects our freedoms. Introducing new people
to the concept of free software is one of the most important
things we can continue to do for the movement.
A schedule of all of the activities that took place during our
anniversary celebration is at the [anniversary event page][24],
and you can find links to all of these videos there. We learned
so much during the event, and we hope you will share these videos
with your community and on your favorite microblogging service to
help spread the free software message. We are so thankful for all
the speakers and participants that joined us for the FSF35
celebration, and we continue to be inspired by you.
[24]: [link removed]
In freedom,
Zoë Kooyman
Program Manager
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