Letter to the Editor: Clarifying neurodiversity-affirming frameworks in stuttering.

This letter responds to recent characterizations of neurodiversity-affirming and anti-ableist frameworks in stuttering in Vanryckeghem's (2026) position paper. We argue that these frameworks do not reject speech-related goals, intervention, or evidence-based practice. Rather, they question whether apparent fluency should function as the default marker of therapeutic success and emphasize outcomes such as participation, communicative agency, identity, and wellbeing. We also distinguish client-defined speech change from compulsory normalization and call for greater precision in representing neurodiversity scholarship, treatment goals, and the role of norms in stuttering care.