Black people throughout the country, in more than 20 states, have been getting racist text messages that order them to report to a plantation for slave labor, and numerous other outlets. The texts reference “slave catchers” and “picking cotton,” in addition to warning the recipients that they will be searched upon arrival.
Following the 2024 election, people in Virginia, Georgia, and more reported receiving racist text messages claiming they were ‘selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation.’ pic.twitter.com/XUYTyaI1Su
— Complex (@Complex) November 8, 2024
These hate-filled messages have been received by both kids and adults. The “texts appear to be targeting Black and Brown individuals, including students,” New York’s attorney general Letitia James said. Various AG offices from other states have also issued statements.
The texts all come from unknown phone numbers and began ramping after the election on Tuesday. NAACP president Derrick Johnson said that “these messages represent an alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric from racist groups across the country, who now feel emboldened to spread hate and stoke the flames of fear that many of us are feeling after Tuesday’s election results.”
I have been made aware of racist and vile spam text messages individuals have received throughout Louisiana. I have directed the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation to fully investigate the origins of these disgusting texts that only intend to divide us. I urge anyone who received… pic.twitter.com/akz37kYbXq
— Attorney General Liz Murrill (@AGLizMurrill) November 7, 2024
The mother of a University of Alabama student who received one of the messages said that “it’s eerie that it’s the day after the election. It’s eerie that it came to my daughter’s personal phone. It’s eerie that it’s only going to Black students.”
A spokesperson for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign wrote in a statement that it “has absolutely nothing to do with these text messages.” The FBI in a statement, noting that it’s been in “contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter.”
It remains unclear who sent the texts and how they did it. The messages targeted people of color, suggesting that the senders had biographical information on the recipients. Many of the messages were sent through TextNow, a free app that provides phone numbers, texting and calling services.
TextNow told CNN that it believes this is a “widespread, coordinated attack.” The service lets people sign up anonymously and sends texts via randomly-generated phone numbers. It says it has been busy “rapidly disabling the related accounts.” The company is also “working alongside our industry partners to uncover more details and continue to monitor patterns to actively block any new accounts attempting to send these messages.”
If you have received one of these horrific texts, lawmakers encourage you to reach out to your state’s AG or email . It’s currently unknown how many people have received the messages.
