‘White supremacy’: Lidia Thorpe explodes over Sam Kerr racism trial

Senator Lidia Thorpe has backed Sam Kerr in her racism trial and accused British police of benefiting from “white supremacy”.

Senator Lidia Thorpe has backed Sam Kerr and accused British police of benefiting from “white supremacy” in a fiery speech over the case unfolding in London.

The soccer star is currently facing a charge of racially aggravated harassment with intent to cause alarm or distress after she called London policeman Stephen Lovell “f***ing stupid and white” on January 30, 2022.

She claims she and her fiancee Kristie Mewis were afraid after a cab driver who accused them of damaging his vehicle refused to let them out on the night in question.

The Matildas star told the court she was treated differently by police “because of the colour of my skin” after “fearing for my life” following the incident.

“The way he was accusing me of lying, and later arresting me for criminal damage even though Kristie said it was just her [who smashed the taxi’s window],” she said.

“At the time I thought they were trying to put it on me. I believed [officers] were treating me differently because of what they perceived to be the colour of my skin — particularly PC Lovell’s behaviour.”

Speaking in the Senate under parliamentary privilege, Senator Thorpe backed Kerr, whose father Roger was born in Kolkata, India, to an English father and Indian mother.

“I stand with Sam Kerr,” Senator Thorpe said.

“What Sam experienced that night is what so many black and brown women experience every single day. She had been locked in a taxi for 20 minutes unsure of where she was going or whether she was being kidnapped.

“Her simple request to that police officer was that he put himself in her shoes.

“But instead of interviewing the taxi driver to investigate Sam’s concerns, the police officer decided to belittle and ignore her.

Sam Kerr arrives at Kingston-Upon-Thames Crown Court. Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images

“This is racism. For those who need a reminder, here is a quick definition — racism is a system of power and oppression based on race, a system of which social standards, institutions, laws and political decisions establish and reinforce norms that uphold inequalities between racial groups.

“Racism is about how power works to oppress people [who are] already copping it.”

Senator Thorpe previously sparked controversy when she urged Australians to “replace all statues of captain cook with statues of Sam Kerr, our one true captain”.

She made the comments in March 2024, as it was revealed that Kerr had called a British police officer racist.

Senator Thorpe dismissed the complaints of police in the case.

“It is a system that upholds white supremacy, like this place [federal parliament],” she said.

“A white cop who is a part of a system that upholds white supremacy and who benefits from white supremacy cannot be a victim of white supremacy — come on.

“A lot of people are still blind to this, obviously. We have a long way to go to understand what racism really is in this country and how it functions in our everyday society.”

The Senator’s outburst came on the same day she heckled American pro-nuclear energy activist Grace Stanke over nuclear power after the pair bumped into each other in parliament.

Body-cam footage of Kerr after the taxi incident was played in court. Picture: X

Aussie serial killer made Kerr fearful of taxis

In her evidence, Kerr said she preferred to take Ubers instead of taxis, and cited ‘Claremont Killer’ Bradley Robert Edwards, a taxi driver who was convicted in 2020 for two murders in 1996 and 1997 in Perth.

“I lived in a state where for 30 years there was a serial killer that was thought to have been a taxi driver,” Kerr said.

“Everyone was talking about not getting in a taxi.”

The Chelsea footballer also told the court she “feared for her life” when the taxi driver drove her and Mewis to a police station after allegations one of the couple smashed the car’s rear window after a drunken night out.

The couple had been celebrating prior to the incident and grabbed a cab to go home.

The pair were driven to Twickenham police station by the taxi driver, who complained the pair had refused to pay clean-up costs after one of them was sick, and that one of them also smashed the vehicle’s rear window.

Originally published as ‘White supremacy’: Lidia Thorpe explodes over Sam Kerr racism trial