Woman cleared by court for coconut placard at rally

A teacher who carried a placard at a pro-Palestinian protest depicting Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman as coconuts has been found not guilty of a racially aggravated public order offence.

Marieha Hussain, 37, of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire denied the charge at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday.

She carried a picture showing the faces of the then Prime Minister and Home Secretary superimposed on coconuts under a palm tree in November 2023.

Her defence said the placard was not racist, but satirical and humorous.

Prosecutor Jonathan Bryan argued coconut was a well-known racial slur, suggesting that someone was brown on the outside but white on the inside.

Mr Bryan alleged that Ms Hussain had crossed the line from legitimate political expression to racial insult.

He said: “Coconut is a well-known racial slur which has a very clear meaning.

“You may be brown on the outside, but you’re white on the inside. In other words, you’re a race traitor – you’re less brown or black than you should be.”

Ms Hussain’s defence described the decision to bring the court case as a disturbing attack on the right to freedom of expression and peaceful protest.

In a prepared statement read to the court by the prosecution, she said the placard was in opposition to an “exceptional manifestation of hatred towards vulnerable or minority groups emanating from the home secretary and supported by the prime minister”.

An image on the other side of the placard depicted the former home secretary as “Cruella Braverman”, Ms Hussain said in a statement, adding: “I find it astonishing it could be conceived as a message of hate.”

Rajiv Menon KC, defending, said: “That Marieha Hussain of all people is being prosecuted for a racially aggravated offence whilst the likes of Suella Braverman and Nigel Farage and Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – aka Tommy Robinson – and Frank Hester are seemingly free to make inflammatory and divisive statements … is, I’m afraid, incomprehensible to many people.”

Mr Menon said Ms Hussain was a woman of “impeccable character”, adding: “It would be a tragedy – I use that word advisedly – for her to be convicted of a racially aggravated offence when she quite obviously does not have a racist bone in her body.”

He told the court the placard was “a pictorial attempt” at “political criticism” of Mr Sunak and Ms Braverman.

After a two-day trial, judge ruled that the placard was “part of the genre of political satire”.

District judge Vanessa Lloyd said: “As such, the prosecution have not proved to the criminal standard that it was abusive.

“The prosecution has also not proved to the criminal standard that you were aware that your placard may be abusive.”