According to reports from CNN and numerous other news outlets, Black people in more than 20 states across the country are receiving racist text messages ordering them to report to plantations for slave labor. The document makes reference to “slave catchers” and “cotton pickers” and warns recipients that they will be tested upon arrival.
After the 2024 election, people in states like Virginia and Georgia reported receiving racist text messages claiming they had been “chosen to pick cotton at the nearest plantation.” pic.twitter.com/XUYTyaI1Su
— Complex (@Complex) November 8, 2024
These hateful messages are received by both children and adults. “The document appears to target black and brown people, including students,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. Various AG offices in other states also released statements.
The text messages, all from unknown phone numbers, began to spike after Tuesday’s election. “These messages fan the flames of fear that many of us are feeling in the wake of Tuesday’s election results, and racial injustices across the country are emboldened to spread hate,” said NAACP President Derrick Johnson. “It represents an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from partisan groups.”
I learned about racist and vile spam text messages that individuals across the state of Louisiana received. I have directed the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation to thoroughly investigate the source of these damning documents whose sole purpose is to divide us. Thank you to those who received it… pic.twitter.com/akz37kYbXq
— Attorney General Liz Murrill (@AGLizMurrill) November 7, 2024
“It’s eerie that it’s the day after the election,” said the mother of a University of Alabama student who received one of the messages. It was creepy that it arrived on my daughter’s personal cell phone. It’s creepy that it’s only directed at black students. ”
A spokesperson for President Donald Trump’s campaign said in a statement: “We have nothing to do with these text messages.” The FBI addressed the situation in a statement, saying it was “in contact with the Department of Justice and other federal authorities regarding this matter.”
It remains unclear who sent the texts and how they were sent. The messages targeted people of color, suggesting the sender had background information on the recipients. Many of the messages were sent through TextNow, a free app that provides phone numbers, text messages, and calling services.
TextNow told CNN it believes this was a “widespread, coordinated attack.” The service allows you to sign up anonymously and send texts via a randomly generated phone number. It said it was busy “quickly disabling associated accounts.” The company also said it is “working with industry partners to uncover more details and continue to monitor patterns to proactively block new accounts attempting to send these messages.”
If you receive one of these scary texts, lawmakers recommend contacting your state’s executive branch office or emailing OAGCivilRights@dc.gov. It is unclear at this time how many people received the message.
