Videos and pictures of incidents of intimidation, threats and violence against gender critical women in the UK.
We have compiled a list of over 50 incidents. Here are some of the the incidents on film and in pictures.
13th September 2017, London
Transactivists attacked Maria MacLachlan (60) and stole and damaged her camera at Speakers’ Corner in London. Trans-identifying “Tara Wolf” (25) was later convicted of assault; the judge required MacLachlan to refer to her six foot tall attacker as “she”.
14th February 2018, Edinburgh
Woman’s Place UK held a meeting in Edinburgh. There was an intimidating protest outside with protestors banging pots and pans throughout. Women entering the meeting were called “fascists”. The protest was intimidating and women were escorted out by the police.
In the WPUK video of Jackie Mearns’s talk, you can hear the protestors outside.
19th April 2018, Bristol
Venice Allan organised a We Need to Talk event at the Jam Jar community arts centre in Bristol to talk about the Gender Recognition Act. Black-clad activists in balaclavas forced their way into the building and blocked the stairs so that women could not get in or out. The meeting required a heavy police presence to go ahead.
23rd September 2019, Brighton
Sussex Police did nothing to prevent a mob of around a hundred protestors from intimidating women entering and leaving a Woman’s Place UK meeting and banging on windows during the talks.
2nd September 2021, Edinburgh
At a rally outside the Scottish Parliament organised by For Women Scotland to protest against the Gender Recognition Reform Bill, counter-protesters confronted women. Footage of the event shows a trans-identified man chanting “Witch!” at the protesters. At one point, the man approaches a woman and screams “Witch! Witch! Witch!” directly into her face. Police can be seen standing between the protest and the counter-demonstration.
16th–17th October 2021, Portsmouth
Trans-rights protesters carried placards featuring slogans such as “Suck my dick you transphobic c**t” outside FiLiA, a feminist conference at Portsmouth Guildhall. Co-ordinated by trans-identifying man Steph Richards, protesters shouting slogans (“Trans women are women”, “Blow jobs are real jobs”) drowned out an East African refugee speaking about mass rape and disrupted a candlelight vigil for murdered women and girls.
15th May 2022
At a Standing For Women event organised by Kellie-Jay Keen at St Peter’s Square in Manchester, men in masks and hoods tried to intimidate attendees and to disrupt the meeting with loud music. Determined not to allow the women to get close to the statue of Suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, the men occupied it and physically assaulted one woman, grabbing and pushing her. Aleks Kovacevic, the women attacked, says she was then threatened with arrest by Greater Manchester Police
19th June 2022
Masked activists forced women attending a Let Women Speak event to barricade themselves in a pub in Bristol. They shouted abuse; held up a sign “TERFs can suck my dick” and wrote on the ground: “After Colston TERFs are next”.
18th September 2022
A Standing For Women meeting in Brighton was protested against by activists who threw smoke bombs into the crowd. Three trans-rights activists were arrested. Police told The Brighton Argus: “A woman and two men were arrested: one on suspicion of assault, one on suspicion of obstructing a police officer and one on suspicion of sexual assault by touching.” One of the male activists arrested was found to be carrying a knife.
23rd July 2023
A transactivist punched a 54-year-old woman, Julie Marshall, in the face twice then hit her on the arm at a Women Won’t Wheesht event in Aberdeen. A 26-year-old was given a recorded police warning in connection with the incident.
31st August 2023
Sarah Jane (formerly Alan) Baker, who served 30 years in prison for violent crimes including kidnapping and torture with extra time for trying to murder a cellmate, told the crowd: “If you see a TERF, punch them in the fucking face.”
13th October 2023
In Glasgow, transactivists protested at Europe’s largest feminist conference – FiLiA – because of the presence of gender-critical campaigners. Scotland’s first minister condemned the male activists who shouted “F**k you” at the 1,500 attendees from 35 countries, including women from Iran, Syria and Afghanistan, who were there to discuss issues such as female genital mutilation and male violence.
This video timeline and the list of incidents has been compiled with thanks to everyone who has organised these events, stewarded them and documented them. If you have other videos email [email protected].