There are ways. I'm in a profession where being open as trans* is career ending. And violence is an ever present concern. And I just don't enjoy the spotlight anyway. Here's how I deal with it:
I publish and give talks under my first name only. I do not allow my last name to be listed in publicity material, programs, websites or other material. That way I could be any of a zillion people with the same first name. If someone unfriendly hears about me, good luck finding me.
I also do not do press interviews and the like. Occasionally the press is present at events where I'm a participant. If that is the case, then they must be informed in very strong terms that they cannot name me. I have had a reporter ask to write about my work with the community and I've refused.
If people cannot agree to these terms, then I will decline their invitation to be a speaker/panelist/discussion participant/whatever else. If that leaves them in a lurch or awkward position, then they are free to reconsider their refusal.
These steps mitigate the risk, but they don't entirely eliminate it. There's always the possibility that someone screws up. And I'm well enough known that if I'm publishing under my first name alone, people know who it is. That fact gives me some credibility, but it also has gotten me cited by full name on a couple of Cathy Brennan's anti-trans* hate websites. But by and large this approach as worked pretty well for me.
As far as violence goes, I do believe in caving into that threat. If you're dead or in a hospital, then usually that means you are not doing any good for anyone. So I encourage people to be realistic about the risk (aren't people at a GSA likely to be a friendly crowd?) but not to do anything stupid that would put them at a realistic risk.
