Australia: Judge Rules Senator Violated Racial Discrimination Law
AustralianAustralia: Judge Rules Senator Violated Racial Discrimination Law
The Facts
An Australian judge has found Sen. Pauline Hanson guilty of violating Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act for a 2022 comment she made on X, then Twitter, regarding Pakistan-born Sen. Mehreen Faruqi.
The incident came around the time of the late Queen Elizabeth II's death, in response to which Faruqi wrote on X that she couldn't mourn the loss of "the leader of a racist empire." Replying to Faruqi, Hanson posted, "piss off back to Pakistan."
The Spin
Hanson's tweet was not covered by official speech rights because it had nothing to do with what Faruqi wrote in her tweet. If Hanson had mentioned reparations, colonialism, treaties with First Nations, or the republic, then she would've been fine. This ruling sets a positive precedent: hate speech is not free speech.
While Hanson's tweet could certainly be seen as insulting, the fact that she's the only one facing punishment is hypocritical at best. Australians should be allowed to offend one another no matter the subject, and even if they're banned from doing so, it will only fuel further racial discord. Choosing which racial groups get to offend one another is not a smart move.