In other words, Democrats are moving too fast on this issue, and in the process, they’re losing support. Instead, they should focus more on explaining the issues surrounding it and educating voters, and as hard as it is, be patient. The alternative, as we have seen, is the election of Donald Trump.

Cathy Putnam

Littleton

I have supported Rep. Seth Moulton in the past; those days are gone.

My nephew is transgender. During this election and since Vice President Kamala Harris was defeated, I find myself with chest pains, worrying for his safety. Positions like Moulton’s add to my grandson’s lack of safety on the street, at school, and in our country.

Regarding quoted from Moulton which appeared in a New York Times article – “Democrats spend far too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being brutally honest about the challenges facing many Americans. I have two little girls, I don’t want them to be hit on a playground by a man or a former male athlete, but as a Democrat I should be afraid to say that.” — I can only say this: Moulton should be concerned about the misogyny, hatred and disenfranchisement his daughters face under the next administration, not his imaginary athlete scenarios.

His girls are safe; he added to the huge amount of insecure lies that are piled up against my family’s safety.

Randy Susan Meyers

Boston

Rep. Seth Moulton is clearly upset about his party’s poor election results, and one might think that his call for Democrats to be “brutal honest” would herald some level of introspection or accountability over the party’s losses — e.g. an acknowledgment of the Democrats’ total failure to present a compelling economic vision to the electorate.

Instead, in an embarrassing fit, the congressman (and grown man) turned his anger not on his own party’s failings, but on the students playing — kids, in other words. And not just any kids, but trans kids, who already suffer some of the highest rates of bullying and suicidal ideation in the country.

How brave.

Bullying from classmates is bad enough without assistance from your elected officials. If the congressman is looking for people to offend, maybe he should pick someone his own size.

Mark Sheridan

Somerville

Democrats have lost their minds. Their extreme liberalism blinds them to the reality that is America. We want to be able to put food on the table, we want our daughters to play sports on an even playing field against other girls, we want borders that allow people in legally, we want the police to protect us.

Seth Moulton raises an important point. The rest of our state’s congressional delegation could not be elected dog caught in most states of this country. Massachusetts is a great state to live in, but imposing its values ​​on the rest of America is not working. Stand your ground on abortion, of course. Fight a lunatic like Donald Trump, of course. I’m not saying don’t help disadvantaged groups, but it can’t be at the expense of everyone else.

Democrats fight to protect the rights of the unheard and forget about the rights of the heard.

Richard Zorgniotti

Cambridge

Rep. Seth Moulton doesn’t want his two daughters “to be hit on a playing field by a man or a former male athlete.” I don’t think any parent wants their kids to be run over on a playground, period. I suppose he’s worried about the size and strength of a “former male athlete,” but I imagine his daughters can meet plenty of athletes, trans or otherwise, who are bigger and stronger. Should they be banned too?

Transness is real, and a big/strong trans athlete has the same rights as a big/strong cisgender athlete. Transgender people are a protected class, which makes Moulton’s comments both discriminatory and transphobic.

President-elect Trump has recently fueled the fire of transphobia by falsely suggesting that children are having sex reassignment surgeries while at school. Most of us know this is ridiculous, but many of his followers take what he says as fact. This makes transgender people particularly vulnerable right now, so the timing of Moulton’s comments couldn’t be worse.

According to a study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law, transgender people are four times more likely than cisgender people to be victims of violence. The solution is not exclusion; on the contrary, it is inclusion.

Dan Kupferman

Mashpee

The writer is a commissioner of the Barnstable County Human Rights Advisory Commission and a member of the City of Mashpee’s Inclusion and Diversity Committee.

Although we may not like it, there are realities in politics that we have to face. Republicans realized that the majority of Americans believe in a woman’s right to choose, so they quietly retreated from their flamboyant stance on abortion. They haven’t necessarily abandoned their position, but they’ve certainly toned down the rhetoric.

I agree with Seth Moulton’s comment in a statement he made on Friday in response to criticism of his remarks about identity politics, that “we shame and diminish too many views held by too many voters”. We Democrats must not give up our position on transgender rights, but we must respectfully listen to everyone’s point of view. To dismiss opinions we disagree with as unworthy or ridiculous is not fair. And yes, some voted for Donald Trump because they don’t think their views and concerns are respected by the left.

Jim Whalen

Hudson