> Calling this “libre software” instead of “free software” seems very self-serving

How so?

When talking to a non-technical audience my experience has been that the term "free software" is misinterpreted more often than not. If a name always requires an ancillary explanation ("...as in freedom, not beer") and collides with a common and wildly different meaning then it is not a good name.

"Open Source" advocates realized early on that the name was a fatal liability and switched to a significantly better one.

Trying to rebrand free (as in freedom) software movement as "libre" is probably too little, too late but I don't think it hurts to try.