This touches on something I've noticed the past few years - it seems to me many advocates of most topics often do more harm than good for their cause - taking hardline positions normal people simply can't relate to, even if they do agree in theory.

Anyway, on the topic of "free" software - how might you recommend we try to frame this to be more clear to the public? I think people tried to make "libre software" a thing, but doesn't that have the exact same issue - that is, that people will misunderstand what it is?

That’s what open is meant to stand for, but Google et al have successfully caged that.

Freedom Software?

Beats Open Software because open is still ambiguous to non-technical people.

"Freedom Apps" if you truly want to talk to the masses.