Australian court rejects racial discrimination appeal by Pauline Hanson

Australia's Full Federal Court has rejected an appeal by Pauline Hanson, leader of the anti-migrant One Nation party, challenging a 2024 finding that she engaged in racial discrimination. The dispute originated from a social media post Hanson made two years prior, on the day Queen Elizabeth II died, in which she told Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi to leave the country and return to Pakistan. Faruqi had posted commentary questioning whether she could mourn the British monarch, characterizing the empire as racist and built on colonized peoples' suffering. The three-judge panel determined that Hanson's comment constituted unlawful anti-Muslim and Islamophobic speech that fell outside protections for free expression or fair comment on matters of public interest. Faruqi celebrated the decision as vindication for those targeted by discriminatory rhetoric. Hanson signaled her intention to pursue a final appeal to Australia's High Court, arguing that public discourse has become overly restricted by laws preventing ordinary citizens from expressing personal views without fear of offense.