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contradictory-support.html (5614B)

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 <title>Beware of Contradictory &ldquo;Support&rdquo;
 - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation</title>
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 <h2>Beware of Contradictory &ldquo;Support&rdquo;</h2>
 
 <address class="byline">by Richard Stallman</address>
 
 <p>There are organizations that proclaim support for free software or
 the GNU Project, and teach classes in use of nonfree software.</p>
 
 <p>It's possible that they do some <em>other</em> things that really
 support free software, but those classes certainly don't.  On the
 contrary, they work directly against the free software movement by
 promoting the use of the nonfree software.  That increases the
 magnitude of the practical problem it is our mission to correct.</p>
 
 <p>Even worse, that grants nonfree software legitimacy.  The basic
 point of the free software movement is that nonfree software is <a
 href="/philosophy/free-software-even-more-important.html">unjust</a>
 and should not exist.  That's why we need a movement to <em>replace
 and eliminate</em> it.  Teaching how to use it asserts that it isn't
 a problem; that opposes the free software movement at the deepest
 level.</p>
 
 <p>Of course, people have the right to state that view, but they
 shouldn't pretend that it constitutes support for our cause.</p>
 
 <p>Even more outrageously, some of those organizations claim that
 their courses in using nonfree software are connected with or even
 certified by the GNU Project or the Free Software Foundation.
 Needless to say, we would never certify such a course, nor recommend
 it, nor have anything to do with it, nor even talk about it except
 with condemnation.</p>
 
 <p>Teaching use of nonfree programs works against free software;
 teaching it in association with the name GNU or the term &ldquo;free
 software&rdquo; causes confusion about what we stand for.</p>
 
 <p>If you encounter such an organization, please explain these points
 to the people who work on it: that such courses go directly against
 the principles of the free software movement.  Explain to them why, if
 they want to help the free software cause, they need to teach people to
 choose free software, not legitimize nonfree software.</p>
 
 <p>If they ask you to participate in those courses, as a student or
 teacher, that gives you an opportunity
 to <a href="/philosophy/saying-no-even-once.html"> say no</a> for a
 change.</p>
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 <p>Please send general FSF &amp; GNU inquiries to
 <a href="mailto:gnu@gnu.org">&lt;gnu@gnu.org&gt;</a>.
 There are also <a href="/contact/">other ways to contact</a>
 the FSF.  Broken links and other corrections or suggestions can be sent
 to <a href="mailto:webmasters@gnu.org">&lt;webmasters@gnu.org&gt;</a>.</p>
 
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 <p>Copyright &copy; 2016, 2020, 2021 Richard Stallman</p>
 
 <p>This page is licensed under a <a rel="license"
 href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">Creative
 Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License</a>.</p>
 
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 <p class="unprintable">Updated:
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 $Date: 2021/09/02 08:55:39 $
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 </p>
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