is she talking about the WPUK meeting in Brighton last year
Yes.
It was frightening for many there.
"Emily Ward attended the WPUK unofficial Labour Party fringe meeting in Brighton in September 2019.
(extract)
"I had my fish and chips on Brighton pier and arrived at the venue just before the start time of 7pm. The access to the building was impeded by an angry mob. I call them a “mob” because they seemed intent on causing trouble. People coming into the meeting—many old enough to be the protestors’ mothers and grandmothers; many who fought for rights the protestors currently enjoy—were screamed at and taunted. Several were doused with water. We were hurried inside under police escort. The constables did not push the protestors back, instead instructing us to “get inside quickly” (implied: before you get hurt).
Inside, we were ushered into a large basement meeting room. One woman said she felt we were going into a bunker. But it did not feel safe. The protestors had positioned themselves outside along the room’s street-level windows, shouting, pounding and kicking at the glass. The noise was deafening and I feared the windows would shatter and we would be sprayed with glass. Why the police allowed this level of harassment to go on and on is a subject for citizens of the UK to take up with their government. But I will say I felt afraid for the safety of everyone in that room.
Despite the intimidation, the meeting went on. Three intelligent, thoughtful women spoke. There was no hate speech. There was no transphobia. On the contrary, the right of trans people to be free from violence and deserving of all human rights protections under the law was explicitly and repeatedly affirmed. Questions and concerns were respectfully communicated. WPUK public meetings are videotaped and posted on their YouTube channel. They’re a great resource for anyone seeking to understand the issues and what’s at stake. There was a Q&A, and the meeting concluded.
Leaving the venue, the protestors were even more inflamed, perhaps because they had not succeeded in closing down the meeting. ”WPUK IS A HATE GROUP!” “POLICE PROTECT THE TRANSPHOBES!” “TRANS WOMEN ARE REAL WOMEN!” “TRANS MEN ARE REAL MEN!” There was so much rage coming at us. It was strange; surreal. As a person who has spent my life advocating for marginalized groups, it made no sense. As a lesbian, it made no sense. As a woman who has resisted the policing of gender since a very small child, it made no sense.
But beneath the rage I heard something else: desperation, and people in pain, and loneliness. I feel for the pain of people who do not fit in. I did not fit in. The policing of gender is real and damaging, shaming all but the most determined into conformity. Part of me wants to embrace these kids because I know they’re suffering. But another part of me is scared to death of them, because they blame us for their pain, and because they are so sure of themselves, and so entitled. They are unable to think from the perspective of others, and in that failure they have become abusive, and dangerous, like men who beat their wives because they will not say the words they want to hear.
For those of us who have worked to end men’s violence against women, the speech and actions of transgender activists are chillingly familiar. We recognize the hatred of women when we see it." (continues)
womansplaceuk.org/2019/11/19/what-happened-at-brighton-wpuklab19/