Getting in someone's face is an escalation of physical aggression

It's literally not. That's not what "physical" means. It's... provoking. The guy with the drum was... I dunno, he was an asshole.

It's certainly possible that he knew the kids were loose cannons and was hoping that by "getting in someone's face" he could get one of them to throw a punch on camera. Could be. I mean, the guy clearly had an agenda, and it probably doesn't align with your politics. But that's still not "aggression" by any reasonable definition. Stop being a snowflake.