Let Women Speak is a series of public rallies founded in 2020 by British anti-trans extremist Kellie-Jay Keen, also known as Posie Parker. The movement grew out of Keen’s earlier organization, Standing for Women, and was established to provide open-microphone events where speakers could make “gender critical” speeches on public policy concerning gender identity and expression. What began as a recurring gathering at London’s Speakers’ Corner later expanded into an international campaign spanning Europe, North America, Australia, and New Zealand.
Background
Keelie-Jay Keen began making increasingly strident anti-trans public comments in 2016. Standing for Women emerged in 2018 during debates over the United Kingdom government’s proposed reforms to the Gender Recognition Act (GRA). The Standing for Women website launched in August 2018. The campaign initially focused on petitions, public meetings, lobbying, online videos, and advocacy concerning what it described as women’s sex-based rights. Over time, Standing for Women developed into the umbrella organization under which a variety of campaigns and initiatives were organized.
According to the organization, anyone may attend and women are encouraged to speak, with men asked to wait until the end of the program. The hashtag #LetWomenSpeak became the principal public-facing slogan associated with the movement.
Following international tours in 2022 and especially 2023, the Let Women Speak name became substantially better known than Standing for Women. Media coverage of rallies across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, and North America almost universally referred to the events as Let Women Speak, while Standing for Women remained the organizational entity responsible for coordinating them.
In November 2022, Keen purchased the domain letwomenspeak.org and redirected it to Keen’s Adult Human Female merchandise store. In November 2023, the Standing for Women website was rebranded as Let Women Speak. In February 2024, Keen launched the website Let Women Speak at a new domain and redirected standingforwomen.com to letwomenspeak.org.
Events
This is a partial list of Let Women Speak events.
2020
In 2017, Venice Allan organized a series of panel discussions called We Need To Talk UK and Ireland, with anti-trans speakers on sex, gender and feminism. Allan was also part of the collective that in 2020 started regular meetups at the Speaker’s Corner in London, which went on to become Let Women Speak.
The first “Let Women Speak” event was held at Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park, London on July 19, 2020. Additional events followed on August 30 and September 13, 2020, the latter dedicated to the memory of fanti-trans extremist Magdalen Berns, who had died earlier that year.
- July 19, 2020: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- August 30, 2020: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- September 13, 2020: London (Speakers’ Corner)
2021
The movement continued with regular London events throughout 2021. During this period, the events increasingly attracted both supporters and organized counter-protests, making police presence a routine feature of many gatherings.
- May 23, 2021: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- June 27, 2021: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- August 1, 2021: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- August 29, 2021: London (Speakers’ Corner)
- September 26, 2021: London (Speakers’ Corner) – coinciding with the Woman’s Party conference
2022
In 2022, Let Women Speak expanded beyond London with a national tour that included events in Leeds, Nottingham, Manchester, Bristol, Brighton, Cardiff, and Newcastle.
- February 13, 2022: Nottingham
- May 15, 2022: Manchester
- June 19, 2022: Bristol
- September 17, 2022 Leeds
- September 18, 2022: Brighton
- November 19, 2022: Cardiff
2023
The movement became internationally prominent during 2023, when Keen organized tours across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Ireland, and the United States. Australian events were held in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Hobart, and Canberra, while North American events included Washington, D.C., Hollywood, San Francisco, Tacoma, Austin, and Chicago. European events were held in Dublin, Vienna, Geneva, Madrid, and at the European Parliament in Brussels.
The Melbourne rally of March 18, 2023 became one of the movement’s defining incidents. During the event, a group of masked neo-Nazis appeared separately from the organizers, displaying Nazi salutes on the steps of the Victorian Parliament. Their presence was widely condemned, but the incident generated extensive media coverage and political controversy. Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming, who had attended the rally, was later expelled from the parliamentary Liberal Party.
A week later, on March 25, 2023, Keen’s Auckland rally was overwhelmed by thousands of counter-protesters. After being doused with tomato juice and surrounded by demonstrators, Keen was escorted from the venue by police before delivering a planned speech. The cancellation of the Auckland address also led to the cancellation of a scheduled Wellington event.
- January 15, 2023: Newcastle
- February 5, 2023: Glasgow
- March 11, 2023: Sydney, Australia
- March 12, 2023: Brisbane, Australia
- March 18, 2023: Melbourne, Australia
- March 19, 2023: Adelaide, Australia
- March 25, 2023: Perth, Australia
- April 15, 2023: Dublin, Ireland
- April 16, 2023: Belfast, Northern Ireland
- April 22, 2023: London (European Parliament event / Brussels, Belgium)
- April 29, 2023: Madrid, Spain
- May 6, 2023: Geneva, Switzerland
- May 13, 2023: Vienna, Austria
- May 20, 2023: Auckland, New Zealand
- June 17, 2023: Washington, DC (White House edition), United States
- June 24, 2023: Hollywood (Los Angeles), United States
- July 1, 2023: San Francisco, United States
- July 8, 2023: Tacoma (Seattle), United States
- July 15, 2023: Austin, United States
- July 22, 2023: Chicago, United States
- September 20, 2023: Auckland, New Zealand (NZ Justice event)
- Canceled: Wellington, New Zealand
- September 24, 2023: London (Reformers’ Tree)
- October 8, 2023: Liverpool
- October 29, 2023: London (Reformers’ Tree)
- November 18, 2023: Leeds
- November 26, 2023: London (Reformers’ Tree)
2024
Beginning in 2024, Let Women Speak shifted its emphasis back toward regular London gatherings, holding events approximately every two months before establishing a monthly schedule at Reformers’ Tree in Hyde Park. The organization also broadened its activities to include related events such as Let Women Sing.
- January 20, 2024: Exeter (Princesshay / Bedford Street)
- January 28, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- February 25, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- March 24, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- April 28, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- May 26, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- June 30, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- July 28, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- August 25, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- September 29, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- October 27, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- November 24, 2024: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
2025
- January 26, 2025: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- February 23, 2025: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- March 23, 2025: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- April 27, 2025: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- August 9, 2025: Glasgow reunion – canceled
2026
- March 1, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park)
- May 31, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- July 26, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- August 30, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- September 27, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- October 25, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- November 29, 2026: London (Reformers’ Tree, Hyde Park / Marble Arch)
- Canceled event: London (Department of Health and Social Care) – puberty blocker protest
- TBD: London (Royal Courts of Justice) – sex crime sentencing reform protest
Participants
This is a partial list of prominent participants.
- Laura Becker (Washington, DC, 2023)
- Beth Bourne (Oakland, 2023)
- Kara Dansky (Washington, DC, 2023)
- Moira Deeming (Melbourne, 2023)
- Chris Elston [“Billboard Chris”] (Australian and New Zealand, 2023)
- Maya Forstater (London, 2021–2022)
- Sall Grover (London, 2023)
- Angela Jones (Melbourne, 2023)
- Helen Joyce (London, 2021–2022)
- Jennifer Lahl (Washington, DC, 2023)
- Julia Long (London, 2021–2022)
- Sara Morrison (Belfast, 2023)
- Kirralie Smith (Brisbane, 2023)
- Kellie Tranter (Sydney, 2023)
- Rachel Wilson (Washington, DC, 2023)
Resources
Let Women Speak (letwomenspeak.org)
- formerly Standing for Women (standingforwomen.com) [archive]
X/Twitter (x.com)
Facebook (facebook.com)