To the Editor:
“These Words Are Vanishing in a ‘Free Speech’ Administration” (news article, March 11) sends a fearsome message and shows an assault on a very basic right of expression. How can democracy flourish in an atmosphere in which the very use of a word is threatening our peace of mind?
Are we heading to a new form of Newspeak?
Jackie Lavalle
Queens
To the Editor:
It’s outrageous that the federal government is banning or limiting so many essential words from documents, including the word “women,” along with “gender,” “sex,” “underserved” and “pregnant people.” The word “men” is — of course — fine, as long as it is not in the phrase “men who have sex with men.”
Women are more than half of the population! We pay a lot in taxes, and share many needs and concerns, such as health issues and a greater probability of low wages, poverty and experience of domestic violence and sexual assault.
Two people working on health care grants have told me that mentions of women, as well as “reproductive health,” have to come out of grant reports and proposals — despite the criminal neglect of women’s health by the medical profession for most of our history and continuing into the present.
Evidently, a group of unmentionable second-class citizens should stop competing with men for jobs, political office, influence in family decisions or anything else, and instead have many more children, but without informed medical care, education or outreach.
Mary King
Portland, Ore.
To the Editor:
Truly Orwellian. And stupid. I guess the police can’t set up “barriers” anymore, nor can they help crime “victims.” And presumably people can no longer “belong” to a group or “political” party. Are people with “disabilities” supposed to cease to exist? That could explain why there’s no need for anything to be “accessible.”
And I’m not sure whether schools can no longer teach grammar at all, or just not identify “pronouns.” Apparently we can no longer “diversify” our portfolios, which is perhaps not a bad thing since we will be unable to determine the amount of “equity” a company holds.
But I’m really confused about whether “sex” is banned for everyone — or just for people who are “female” and “women.”
To the Editor:
Re “Keeping the G.O.P. in Line With the Threat of Ruin” (front page, March 11):
As a psychologist, I have been ruminating on the refusal of G.O.P. members of Congress to stand up to President Trump. This article clarifies the dynamic: Fear of consequences for not agreeing, pre-emptive yielding to a demand, and parroting the powerful other are all behaviors of someone being abused.
And Mr. Trump’s behavior — including mocking, degrading, threatening personal and financial ruin, and incessant cyberbullying — has the hallmarks of an abuser. Gifts following the abuse keep the victims feeling special and attached.
As a therapist, I know how difficult it is for victims of abuse to recognize that they are being abused, and even harder to be able to distance themselves from the abuser. Leaving an abusive relationship takes courage, planning and support.
What advice can I give members of Congress? Remember who you were before the abuse. Make a list of your own core values. Develop a support group of like-minded people. Get legal help. You are stronger than the abuser. Your strength comes from a place of conscience.
Abusers generally collapse when faced with a community of strength. You can leave a legacy of integrity and courage.
Nechama Liss-Levinson
Washington
Ideas for Iran
To the Editor:
Re “Conservatives in Iran Force Out Allies of the President, Creating a Crisis” (news article, March 5):
Here is a set of really straightforward steps to jump-start the Iranian economy: End the self-destructive fixation on Israel, stop funding terrorist groups across the Middle East, shut down that nuclear program and allow women to be treated as true equals throughout society.
As a result, economic sanctions would no longer be necessary, vast expenditures on global terrorism could be redirected to productive uses, and a world-class talented labor force would emerge and become a true economic force internationally. Or Iran could continue to languish with Middle Ages ideas and modern-day bills.
Paul E. Greenberg
Brookline, Mass.
