A militant transgender activist who has quickly become one of the most high-profile ‘faces’ of the radical movement is a former soldier and Antifa member, it has been claimed.
Kayla Denker, who runs a YouTube site with videos dedicated to explaining Marxism and guns, posted a video of herself with an assault rifle after the Nashville school shooting.
The Nashville attacker, Audrey Hale, 28, was described by police as transgender, and online appeared to reference herself as ‘Aiden’ – although the authorities are still referring to Hale as a woman.
Hale’s murder of three nine-year-olds and three staff members at a Christian school she attended – and may have resented, according to police – has sparked intense debate among the transgender community.
While the vast majority condemned the attack, fringe groups and extremists said the shooting was in part a consequence of the oppression of trans people.
Denker, based in Colorado, and believed to be a former soldier, was among those who immediately posted a highly provocative video online, showing herself brandishing an assault rifle.
Kayla Denker, who is believed to be a former soldier, posted this video online after the Nashville school shooting on Monday. The shooting was carried out by a transgender person
Denker does not say anything in the TikTok, but reloads her assault rifle multiple times, staring at the camera.
The clip is captioned: ‘While advocating just for trans people to ‘arm ourselves’ is not any kind of solution to the genocide we are facing, I do want to say that if you transphobes do try to come for me…’
The conclusion of her comment was cut short in the images being shared online.
Denker has since made most of her social media accounts private.
One account that remains open to the public is her YouTube page, which she launched in 2016.
Her first video, posted four years ago, was a 10 minute clip entitled ‘The Reclamation of Communism’.
She then uploaded an eight-part series on Marxism, plus three parts of a BBC documentary about the German philosopher.
Denker’s most recent videos are about guns.
In March 2021, she posted a video of a man who appeared to be named Adam discussing guns, entitled: ‘High-Powered Rifles and why the AR-15 is not one.’
In July 2021, she posted a video of the same man entitled: ‘What gear you should get as a beginning shooter.’
It is unclear if the man featured in those videos was Kayla pre-transition.
Kayla Denker, based in Colorado, has cultivated a strong social media presence
A month later, in August 2021, a video was posted to a Patreon site for those interested in guns, Hammer and Pistol, called: ‘Gun Demographics w/ Adam Denker’.
The video’s caption states: ‘Adam Denker called in from the mountains of the PNW so the sound quality is not the best, but I think we had a good discussion on the breakdown of who owns guns, who owns the means of production in the gun industry, and more.
‘Content warning for the episode: Discussion of military-related violence; white supremacy; suicide; right-wing and fascist ideas about violence; discussion on the history of indigenous genocide and enslavement of Africans.’
The links in the online page all click back to Kayla Denker’s current sites.
Kayla Denker’s TikTok video came as trans activists nationwide were continuing to rally their supporters for a ‘Trans Day of Vengeance’, after raising money for firearms training.
The Virginia chapter of the group held a ‘dance party fundraiser’ in Richmond ‘benefiting firearm/self-defense training for trans-Virginians’ on March 7.
The Virginia chapter of the group held a ‘dance party fundraiser’ in Richmond ‘benefiting firearm/self-defense training for trans-Virginians’ on March 7
Twitter has been removing the posts that could be deemed threatening or involve guns associated with the ‘TransDayofVengeance’ hashtag – but it is unclear exactly how many were others posing with weapons as they have since been deleted
One activist using the hashtag on a since-suspended account threatening to kill Christians, using an offensive slur
Two other trans activists have since posted footage and photos of themselves with rifles, which appear to be in direct response to the Nashville shooting
In statements, the group has taken pains to distance themselves from Hale, the Nashville shooter, and her actions, and changed the name of the protest.
The protest on Saturday was initially meant to be called a ‘day of visibility’ but rebranded – before the shooting – to vengeance because it means ‘fighting back with vehemence’.
Contacted by DailyMail.com, the group was quick to say they do not ‘encourage or promote violence’.
But one activist appears to have taken the movement to the next level, posting a picture of a heavily armed person with an assault rifle and threatening to ‘kill christcucks’ – offensive slang for Christians.
Twitter has been removing the posts that could be deemed threatening or involve guns associated with the ‘TransDayofVengeance’ hashtag.
The account @TDNTracker, which posted images of the two women with guns, has since been deleted.
Ella Irwin, Twitter’s head of trust and safety, wrote that the company removed more than 5,000 tweets that included a poster for the event.
She said: ‘We do not support tweets that incite violence irrespective of who posts them.
‘”Vengeance” does not imply peaceful protest. Organizing or support for peaceful protests is ok.’
Two other trans activists have since posted footage and photos of themselves with rifles, which appear to be in direct response to the Nashville shooting.
One says that she will use the weapon for ‘protection’ against ‘transphobes’ who target them.
Audrey Hale’s LinkedIn profile suggested they were now living as a man, and going by the name Aiden when she shot and killed six people at a Christian private school in Nashville
Hale was born female but had recently begun using he/him pronouns and the name ‘Aiden’ according to friends and police
Websites such as Etsy are still being used to sell pro-gun and trans merchandise, with stickers that say ‘defend equality’ with assault rifles
Others have flags and stickers available which say ‘defend equality’ on the trans flag colors
Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Green also saw her account removed after she launched several anti-trans attacks on Twitter.
Greene claimed that ‘Antifa’ was organizing the April 1 event, and re-posted a poster for the protest.
Activists are being encouraged to ‘bring a buddy’ and wear a mask at the event outside of the Supreme Court in DC, which is billed as avenging a ‘trans genocide.’
Organizers did not respond when asked questions about the safety of protests amid the increasing pressure between the two sides of the political spectrum.
Websites such as Etsy are still being used to sell pro-gun and trans merchandise, with stickers that say ‘defend equality’ with assault rifles.
They also sell t-shirts and other items emblazoned with ‘Trans rights… or else’, with the high-powered guns in pink, white and blue – the trans colors – on them.
