Name: Aaron Swartz at 40: The Internet’s Own Boy
Start: 2026-11-08T17:00:00.000-08:00
End: 2026-11-08T19:30:00.000-08:00
Location: Portland, Oregon — venue TBD

Portland Civic Lab

Free community screening • Sunday, November 8 • Portland, Oregon

Venue and final time are being confirmed. The displayed 5 p.m. start is tentative. Register your interest to receive the confirmed details and help us choose the right-sized venue. Your place will be confirmed once arrangements are finalized.

November 8 would have been Aaron Swartz’s 40th birthday.

Aaron believed that knowledge should be accessible and that technology could give people more power over their lives. His work—and the questions he raised about who controls information and who gets to use it—continues to matter.

Portland Civic Lab is organizing a free screening of 

, the documentary about Aaron’s life, work, and fight for an open internet. We’ll come together to remember him, reflect on his ideas, and consider how to carry that spirit forward here in Portland.

The format will be simple: a short welcome, the film, and a brief closing. You don’t need a technical background or any familiarity with Aaron’s story to join us.

I was at MIT from 2008–2013, and like many in that community, I was heartbroken by Aaron’s death. His belief in making knowledge accessible and using technology for the public good feels more important than ever. It’s a spirit I hope to carry into the work of Portland Civic Lab—and one I’d love to bring people together around.

— Edan Krolewicz, founder, Portland Civic Lab

Know a great venue, want to help with the screening, or belong to a community that would like to participate? Reach out at 

Please share this page with anyone who cares about open knowledge, technology, and the public good.