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News and Advice on the World's Latest Innovations | ZDNET

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/&gt;Many open-source and free software people and organizations are upset that The Free Software Foundation has brought its founder, Richard M. Stallman, back to its board of directors.Richard M. Stallman (RMS) has always been a polarizing figure. There are people who love him and those that hate him. For example, RMS often clashed with Linus Torvalds. RMS has claimed that the . He also clashed with Eric S. Raymond, one of , and others over the . And, for many years, . The last finally caught up with him when RMS defended the behavior of the late Marvin Minsky, AI pioneer and associate of notorious billionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Subsequently, . Then, to the surprise of many, . This move has enraged many open source and free software leaders and organizations. Indeed, the itself still hasn't officially announced the news, although its site does list&nbsp;. The feed's latest message is: "No [the FSF annual meeting] organizers (staff or volunteer), speakers, award winners, exhibitors, or until it was public." How did RMS make it back from his self-imposed exile? In an e-mail interview, the FSF Executive Director, John Sullivan, said, as per the "Directors are elected by the FSF's voting members (which include the directors), or can be elected just by the directors." Which was the case here? Sullivan didn't say.&nbsp; It appears from comments by board members that RMS was elected by the directors and not the voting members. Kat Walsh, a FSF board member and technology attorney tweeted, "for whatever it's worth, . I made my arguments and placed my opposing vote; while I was glad I was able to do that I regret not being able to turn the decision the other way." "The announcement was unplanned and I expected to have more time for things I wanted to say and do first, but no,&nbsp;, whose mission is needed but which keeps falling short of fulfilling it," concluded Walsh.&nbsp; As to the delay of the announcement of RMS's return, Sullivan states "The announcement itself was not coordinated, see, so there was no prepared statement. The organization is looking at how that happened and will address it. In the meantime, we have received a lot of feedback. We are reading it and listening carefully." If they're listening carefully, their ears must be red. Paul Fisher, a software engineer, tweeted, "I worked at the FSF for 3 years and volunteered for over 6 years -- that ended in 2004. I witnessed misogyny, sexual objectification, and&nbsp;"&nbsp; Fisher added, "While and the GNU GPL was a groundbreaking document, the community still has a right to hold him to account for his abhorrent actions and harmful speech. RMS should not be part of the FSF." Fisher continued, "The movement has grown larger than one person. We need leaders that are inclusive and treat all humans with the respect and dignity that they deserve. I cannot support a Free Software Foundation that enables RMS." A more recent FSF employee said things had changed little since Fisher's time. Georgia Young, former FSF program manager, tweeted, "I worked at the FSF from 2015-2018 &amp; was [Union] shop steward for a while. I recall having a months (MONTHS) long conversation with ED John Sullivan about why racist &amp; sexist 'hacker humor' from the 90s needed to be removed from. " Young continued, "The thing that randos who have never had to actually work with rms don't understand is that to not objectify women, shout over others at Libreplanet as if it was his birthday party, stop sh*t like 'emacs virgins.'&nbsp; Instead, "That and building the inclusive, impractical community so many people WANT. Spent, instead, on a man's ego, over and over." Matthew Garrett, a well-known Linux kernel developer and former FSF board member, tweeted, "The idea that someone who does enough "good work" earns a pass for inappropriate behavior is pervasive, and fosters environments where abusers can prosper. " Unfortunately, the current FSF board doesn't see this. Garrett added, "I just can't get over the level of reckless " At the same time, though, "I obviously disagree strongly with decisions that the current board made. But they haven't made these decisions to benefit themselves. They earnestly&nbsp;"&nbsp; Based on how other groups and individuals are responding to this move, the FSF board is sadly out of touch with their community. Yes, there are still loyal RMS fans, but that's exactly what they are -- fans, not the movers and shakers of today's free software and open-source world. An open letter to the FSF states: Richard M. Stallman, frequently known as&nbsp; for a long time. He has shown himself to be misogynist, ableist, and transphobic, among other serious accusations of impropriety. These sorts of beliefs have no place in the free software, digital rights, and tech communities. With his recent reinstatement to the Board of Directors of the Free Software Foundation, we call for the entire Board of the FSF to step down and for RMS to be removed from all leadership positions. It's been signed by Neil McGovern, executive director and former &nbsp;Linux Project Leader; Deb Nicholson, general manager of the ; Garrett; a who's who list of free software and open-source developers and leaders; and hundreds of others.&nbsp; They're not alone. The was appalled by RMS's return. This organization, which is independent of the FSF, called for&nbsp;. "The FSF needs to seriously reflect on this decision as well as their decision-making process to prevent similar issues from happening again. Therefore, in the current situation, we see ourselves unable to collaborate both with the FSF and any other organization in which Richard Stallman has a leading position." Numerous other open-source organizations, including the , the , and the are demanding RMS be removed from the FSF. The , which is best known for its , which Stallman wrote, has .&nbsp; What all this adds up to, from where I sit, is potentially the end of the FSF. For years, it's become less and less relevant. In no small part that was because RMS refused to learn how to work and play well with others. Yes, he had great ideas, but he also alienated many would-be supporters along the way, including many people who had worked directly with him. RMS's day as a relevant free software leader is long over. If the FSF doesn't change course immediately, its days may be numbered as well.&nbsp; Related Stories:

/&gt;Many open-source and free software people and organizations are upset that The Free Software Foundation has brought its founder, Richard M. Stallman, back to its board of directors.Richard M. Stallman (RMS) has always been a polarizing figure. There are people who love him and those that hate him. For example, RMS often clashed with Linus Torvalds. RMS has claimed that the . He also clashed with Eric S. Raymond, one of , and others over the . And, for many years, . The last finally caught up with him when RMS defended the behavior of the late Marvin Minsky, AI pioneer and associate of...

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Steven Vaughan-Nichols

Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols

ZDNet is a business technology news website published by CBS Interactive, along with TechRepublic. The brand was founded on April 1, 1991, as a general interest technology portal from Ziff Davis and evolved into an enterprise IT-focused online publication owned by CNET Networks.

News and Advice on the World's Latest Innovations | ZDNET

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