Skip to content, sitemap or skip to search.

Personal tools
Join now
You are here: Home FSF Events John Sullivan - " 'Just don't buy it': Consumer choices in free software activism" (Curitiba, Brazil)

John Sullivan - " 'Just don't buy it': Consumer choices in free software activism" (Curitiba, Brazil)

by Jeanne Rasata Contributions Published on Jul 12, 2019 05:50 AM
Curitiba, Brazil
When Jul 27, 2019

from 10:00 AM to 10:45 AM
Where Curitiba, Brazil

FSF executive director John Sullivan will be giving his speech “‘Just don't buy it’: Consumer choices in free software activism” at DebConf 19 (2019-07-21–28):

Movement activism often focuses on economic decisions. Buy this ethically made product; don't buy that one made by a company that funds terrible things. In free software, we encourage people to boycott (for example) Microsoft, and to instead support companies who sell machines with GNU/Linux.

It's an intuitive idea that, as individuals wanting to make the world better, we should use our willingness to spend or not spend money to reward those who do right and punish those who do wrong. Throughout history, this has sometimes been effective. But how effective? Can it be dangerous?

There is a danger of reducing activism and social change strategy to these decisions. We see this in the free software movement, when some activist campaigns aimed at persuading people to stop using proprietary software are met with responses like, “If you don't like Apple products, just don't buy them. Help make free products that are better than theirs. Why campaign against them?” or “How can you criticize proprietary software but still drive a car that has it?”

As an advocate, have you ever heard these responses, or felt like a hypocrite, or stumbled trying to explain to others why the situation is more complicated than “just don't buy it”?

How do we form a holistic movement strategy for advancing user freedom that takes consumer activism as far as possible, without overprioritizing it?

I hope those interested in effectively fighting for user freedom will join me as I share thoughts formed from 16 years of experience working on the Free Software Foundation's advocacy efforts, against the backdrop of some highlights from the history of other social movements.

Location: Auditório, Av. Sete de Setembro, 3165 Rebouças, Curitiba, PR 80.230-901, Brazil

Please fill out our contact form, so that we can contact you about future events in and around Curitiba.

More information about this event…

Document Actions

The FSF is a charity with a worldwide mission to advance software freedom — learn about our history and work.

fsf.org is powered by:

 

Send your feedback on our translations and new translations of pages to campaigns@fsf.org.