On behalf of Waag, Henk Buursen and Patrice Riemens organize an evening memorial ceremony and round-table discussion in memory of Aaron Swartz.
"Our idea is to remember Aaron, not in silence, but in a joint dialogue in which we will examine and discuss how to continue his work for freedom and justice. We remember Aaron Swartz, the American social justice and free information activist who on Friday, January 11 took his own life at his home in New York.
Aaron Swartz is best known as a genius hacker, creator of RSS, Reddit founder and advocate of many causes that are close to our hearts. As a "knowledge activist", he was the author of a spectacular "liberation" of almost the entire file of scientific articles that the JSTOR organization stored digitally.
This "hack" - which actually was not a hack - brought him into collision with the American justice system. Prosecutors ruthlessly persecuted him, and threatened with decades in prison. The hopelessness of his situation has undoubtedly played an important role in Aaron's decision to deny life itself. We can only caracterise the attitude of the American judicial authorities as deeply unfair.
The entire internet community lost in Aaron one of its sharpest and most sincere minds - and one of the most promising. We regret this deeply. But we will continue to fight for Aaron's cause and follow his example, collectively and as a unified force. His cause is our cause. In us, he will live forever.
Avancemos! Companero Aaron Swartz: Presente! "
Patrice Riemens & Henk Buursen
