Hussain had "crossed the line between legitimate political expression”
A woman has gone on trial for allegedly committing a racially aggravated offence after she held a placard depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman as coconuts during a pro-Palestine protest in London.
Marieha Hussain pleaded not guilty as her trial began at Westminster Magistrates Court on September 12, 2024.
Hussain held the placard at a November 2023 protest.
Opening the case, prosecutor Jonathan Bryan said:
“There were people present who were likely to have been caused harassment, alarm and distress by seeing what was on that placard.”
Mr Bryan said the term “coconut” was a “well-known racial slur which has a very clear meaning” to the effect that “you may be brown on the outside, but you’re white on the inside”.
He added: “In other words, you’re a race traitor – you’re less brown or black than you should be.”
Mr Bryan said Hussain had “crossed the line between legitimate political expression” and moved into “racial insult”.
Rajiv Menon KC, defending, argued the coconut placard was a “political criticism” of Sunak and Braverman.
Mr Menon said: “What she is saying is Suella Braverman – then Home Secretary, sacked two days after – was promoting in different ways a racist political agenda, as evidenced by the Rwanda policy, the racist rhetoric she was using around small boats.
“And the Prime Minister was either acquiescing to it or being inactive.
“It was a political criticism of these two particular politicians.”
In a statement read by the prosecution, Hussain said she attended the protest with her family.
She said: “The march progressed very slowly and in the course, we passed many police officers who did not suggest that anything provocative or disturbing was taking place.
“At no stage did anyone on the march suggest that the posters were an expression of hate to anyone in society.”
Hussain insisted the placard opposed an “exceptional manifestation of hatred towards vulnerable or minority groups emanating from the home secretary and supported by the Prime Minister”.
She added:
“I find it astonishing it could be conceived as a message of hate.”
Metropolitan Police’s Communications Manager Chris Humphreys said images come to the attention of the police service if the force’s social media account is tagged in the post.
Mr Humphreys said the Met “actively monitors” accounts that frequently post protest-related images.
Mr Menon said the image of his client’s sign had been posted on X by ‘Harry’s Place’ – “a secretive political blog headquartered in Washington DC that has a particular interest in opposing any criticism of the Israeli state”.
The account frequently posts images of demonstrators on pro-Palestine marches.
When asked about the account, Mr Humphreys replied:
“I know Harry’s Place is an anonymous political blog.”
The trial continues.
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