*Content warning: mentions of transphobia, racism, rape and harassment*
After giving a speech at an anti-far right event on 8 March, Hannah Spencer had to be escorted through Piccadilly gardens by police officers as a group of anti-trans activists and social media influencers associated with the far-right harassed the Gorton and Denton MP.
The event that Spencer spoke at was the launch of the ‘Together Alliance against the Far-Right’ for Greater Manchester.
It was held in Piccadilly Gardens on the afternoon of International Women’s Day and also featured speakers from Stand Up To Racism, Women Against Far-Right, and trade unions Unison and North West Unite.
During the event, speakers were heckled by a group who had come to disrupt the anti-far-right event. Video footage shows Spencer reiterating the pro-refugee sentiment of her recently successful Gorton and Denton campaign.
Supporters met the speech with cheers while those who had come to disrupt the event repeatedly shouted “can a woman have a penis?” and “what about the Pakistani rape gangs?” as Spencer continued her speech.
Both Spencer and Green Party leader, Zack Polanski, have frequently expressed support for transgender rights with both expressing solidarity with the trans community on social media following the supreme court ruling on the legal definition of a woman last year.
Seen in a YouTube video posted by a far-right activist, Spencer referred to refugees fleeing danger and persecution, saying “these people are our neighbours and we look after each other here.”
In response, a disrupter in the crowd shouted, “do you look after little white girls who are mass-raped by Pakistanis?”.
Once Spencer had finished speaking, some people in the crowd attempted to approach the stage where she was standing but were blocked by attendees of the Together Alliance launch event, who linked arms to form a barrier around the stage.
Footage posted online shows a group of people rushing after the MP as she attempted to leave.
A far-right YouTuber, known online as English Ned, ran in front of Spencer and shouted “you scabby traitor,” as seen in a video posted by the Daily Mail, before positioning himself in front of her as she was being escorted by the police. As Spencer walked past, he shouted “you fucking dirty traitor” at her while filming.
Two men wearing sandwich boards with anti-trans messages written on them followed Spencer, repeatedly asking “can a woman have a penis?”.
They encroached on the MP multiple times along with others while asking “is it ok for men to go into women’s spaces?”
Members of the Together Alliance event organisation wearing high-vis attempted to physically stop those harassing Spencer, which led to altercations between some members of the two groups.
The incidents did not result in any serious injuries and a spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said that “no arrests were made” in relation to the confrontation.
The police escorted Spencer across Piccadilly Gardens and into a police car which was used to transport her away from the area.
A Green Party spokesperson has since commented on the incident, saying: “There is a bitter irony that today, on International Women’s Day, these few men claiming to “protect women” behaved like this towards parliament’s newest female MP, chasing her to a police car.”
“Worse still, some of the abuse faced by Hannah included the same misinformation and outright lies shared by her political opponents online”
“Hannah won’t be silenced and will continue to speak up for the communities that she has been elected to represent.”
