Bitcoin Core emphasized user freedom and censorship resistance as fundamental principles of the network in its June 6, 2025 joint statement

Quotes that support claims

In their statement, the developers argued that while the new transaction relay policy might lead to more non-financial use cases, protecting censorship resistance is one of the core tenets of the blockchain.

Bitcoin is a network that is defined by its users, who have ultimate freedom in choosing what software they use (fully-validating or not) and implementing whatever policies they desire.