Letters: is it free speech or hate speech? – The Guardian

I was saddened to read your editorial on free speech and the right to gender-critical views. At what point do gender-critical views swerve into hate-speech? The arguments perpetuated by those espousing these views are often intensely personal, verge on anti-trans and look to deny others their sense of self. In a liberal society, we should of course treasure free speech, but be brave enough to acknowledge the negative impact it can have on marginalised groups and minorities, challenge fear and misinform, and adapt accordingly.James WandBermondsey, London

Thank you for your commitment to freedom of expression, so vital for press and other media reporting of every issue of public interest (Whatever your view on sex and gender, freedom of speech is key, Editorial). It cant have escaped your notice that your statement comes at a time when Hong Kongs independent media is under sustained attack. Preserving the space for discussion of facts, views and opposing views in line with international human rights law is something to be protected by all who wish to continue to live in a democracy.Susan Kemp Edinburgh

As someone who remembers the 1970s, I agreed with William Keegans relaxed attitude to todays wage/price inflation panic (Dont hit the brakes the recovery is barely out of first gear, Business). What no one mentions is house price inflation, which was not an issue in the 1970s but which today may run at 10% a year and is the major distorter of the economy.

I wonder if Keegan, as a Keynesian, agrees with Galbraiths acerbic attitude to the effect, or otherwise, of changes to the bank rate (which attract so much interest but are usually reactive rather than proactive). The great economist said that central bankers wore conservative tailoring, hung out with the affluent (he might have said effluent in todays world) but that their effect on inflation or recession was practically zilch.David RedshawGravesend, Kent

Nick Cohen reminds us that the majority of over-65s in England and Wales voted Conservative in 2019 (Our politics of nostalgia is a sure sign of present-day decay, Comment). But if 61% of us did, then 39% of us didnt, and that includes pretty well all my relatives and close friends of that generation.

Cohen is quite right to criticise the assault on the National Trust for telling the truth about slavery and colonialism. He is also right to deplore the pension triple lock. Its an embarrassment, and he forgot to mention the untaxed winter fuel payment, though I suspect most of us send that the way of whichever charity might most irritate the prime minister. We care, too, about Brexit-related job losses, if only for the selfish reason that we need people to be paying taxes. Finally, we dont have children at school, but we do have many friends and relatives of school age about whose education and future we care deeply.

Yes, were a minority but, at almost two-fifths, a sizeable one. It would be nice if now and again our existence was acknowledged.John FilbyAshover, Derbyshire

In A brush with art history, (Letters), David Prothero recounts his struggle with Laura Cummings guess the painting, and asks if hes alone. Im a retired psychologist who failed art O-level. Im managing to identify a number at first sight and, with a little research, most of the rest. I recommend Workers Educational Association art history classes. The puzzle is now the first thing I turn to each Sunday. Thank you Laura!Kevin SullivanHereford

In his excellent article (From Grenfell Tower to the Metropolitan police, shirking responsibility has become endemic, Comment), Kenan Malik overlooked one feature that has allowed the evasion of responsibility that he describes. He mentions that, when asked by the inquiry if he took responsibility for the failures on his watch, Robert Black, the former boss of the organisation that managed Grenfell Tower, answered Pass. No proper inquiry should have allowed such an inadequate response to go unchallenged. Similarly, on 10 June, Matt Hancock, then secretary of state for health, said to the Commons health select committee that there had never had a national shortage of PPE. It would be harder to evade responsibility if there were more rigorous challenge from the bodies set up to scrutinise and enforce accountability on the part of public figures and institutions.Gavin BrownManuel, Linlithgow, West Lothian

Nobody should be surprised by the news that private hostel providers are failing to meet the care needs of their vulnerable residents (Hostels from hell, Special report).

This is because this provision for homeless people is overseen by housing associations, a sector increasingly organised since the 1980s on a business model. The solution is to restore responsibility to local authorities where standards, affordability and the quality of care can be assured.Dr Charlie CooperNottingham

Your article, We dont need to be cured or fixed: writers speak out on autism, was a manifestation of the privilege that those with high-functioning autism (myself included) enjoy. My autism, by random luck, does not prevent me from taking part in the world of language but there are many autistic people who are utterly unable to communicate, and thus cannot give chatty interviews. Why was there no mention of these voiceless?

To take another example, in the UK, autism is reason enough to deprive someone of their liberty; there are thousands of people whose autism has deprived them of their legal capacity, and who are otherwise detained for their own protection. Do these people not need a cure or treatment, or are they simply to be left to rot?

Like those interviewed, I regard my autism as an asset, but constructing a myth of autistic people as a model minority, based on a self-selecting group of high-functioning individuals, is to erase and marginalise the countless people rendered profoundly vulnerable, incapacitated, imprisoned or dead on account of their autism or consequences stemming from it.Elijah GranetSan Diego, California

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Letters: is it free speech or hate speech? - The Guardian