Look at what we've achieved together

When the Free Software Foundation (FSF) began forty years ago, its primary focus was providing a legal home for the GNU operating system and developing vital GNU software like Bash and the GNU Core Utilities (Coreutils). As time has gone on, our work advocating for free software rather than simply writing it has become more varied and elaborate, partially in response to the billions of dollars corporations like Microsoft and Apple spend promoting proprietary software that denies its users freedom. We now have more campaigns than ever, some targeting threats like surveillance and Digital Restrictions Management, others introducing users to free software or fighting for the right to repair. All our campaigns defy dystopia and work toward a future in which all users can enjoy user freedom.

Twice a year, the tech, licensing, and campaigns teams inform you, the FSF's supporters, on what we've accomplished.

We're proud to present to you what the campaigns team has accomplished with the help of the community in just these last six months:

• Together with free software enthusiasts all over the world, we had twenty-nine LibreLocal meetups in May alone. The FSF supported several of these meetups with a financial contribution, and almost all of them with coordination and promotion. FSF staff spoke at eight community meetups around the world, two of which were recorded and published on our PeerTube channel so that others can watch Greg Farough's introduction to the FSF and the LibrePlanet community for the Shiraz, Iran event and Miriam Bastian's presentation for the Thessaloniki, Greece meetup. We have great news for those who enjoyed the LibreLocal meetups: there are still more to come.

• We voiced our outrage about Microsoft's latest injustice to require a hardware TPM module for Windows 11 users as part of our Defective by Design campaign. We then asked you to keep putting pressure on Microsoft, since Microsoft tyrannically decided to cease security updates for Windows 10;

• Parts of the IRS tax filing software, Direct File, got released to the people as free software, thanks to your letters to the IRS in response to our call to advocate for freedom-respecting tax filing software.

• We sourced our now well-known FSF40 logo from the free software community through a logo contest;

• We cataloged historic items that speak to the history of the free software movement and entrusted a select number of them to the community in the first ever FSF memorabilia auction;

• We were, and still are, busy organizing the FSF40 hackathon as well as the celebration event we're planning for October 4;

• We highlighted a bunch of free software activists in our Working Together for Free Software series to inspire others to do the same;

• We recorded video tutorials on how to edit the LibrePlanet wiki, as well as how to open a terminal, and move around when using the command line. All these tutorials were published our PeerTube channel;

• We facilitated a smooth running of the board process. This led to the introduction of several new, permanent FSF board and voting members, meaning the FSF's organizational structure is stronger and more committed than ever;

• We invited the free software community to submit nominations for the 2024 Free Software Awards;

• Campaigns manager Greg Farough continued to serve as your software freedom advocate on the machine learning safety consortium of the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); and

• As always, we reported on important news about software freedom such as the US Social Security Administration reversing its freedom-impeding identity verification policy and threats to user freedom such as Amazon tightening the digital handcuffs.

In sum, we've written, thoroughly reviewed, and published thirty-two blog posts and press releases, plus six newsletters in English, French, and Spanish, and–not to forget–the spring Bulletin with five special articles, which should reach you soon!

We're only halfway through 2025, and the best is yet to come. To give you just a few examples: there are more LibreLocal meetups to come, the in-person celebration on October 4, and the FSF40 hackathon. On top of our existing campaigns for software freedom, we also plan to give more talks and workshops, turn our command line videos into a series, and launch a training program for volunteers so that they can visit schools in their area to educate students and teachers about free software.

In a world where technology is becoming increasingly predatory, a dystopian reality seems unavoidable. It can feel like a small number of people are dictating how we live our lives. Free software can stand against the aspects of dystopia caused by proprietary software. It is the antithesis to a dystopian reality instilled in software subjection, because with libre software, you, the user, have full control over the software vital to your daily life.

Defy dystopia with free software!

The FSF has been campaigning for your user freedom for forty years and won't stop until we have achieved software freedom for all computer users. However, we can't prevent a dystopian future alone -- we need you.

Can you join us in our crucial work to guard user freedom and defy dystopia? Become an associate member today! Every associate member counts, and every new member will help us reach our fundraising goal of 200 new members. By supporting us today, you help defy dystopia.

We know not everyone is in a position to donate $140 USD or more, which is why we also offer the Friends membership at $35 USD that comes with a few less benefits. In addition, you can now apply to receive a sponsored FSF membership.

Our advocacy will continue to grow and expand as needed -- until we've defeated dystopia for good. We rely on your commitment to software freedom to help fuel our own. With every refusal to use a nonfree program, and promotion of a free one in its place, we come closer to an autonomous digital future for all.

Thank you for your support,

Miriam Bastian
Program Manager

"Fight Dystopia" © 2025 by the Free Software Foundation, Inc. This image is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.