In the wake of Donald Trump’s election victory, scores of Black people across the country reported receiving a racist text message from an unknown sender. news accounts And screenshots shared on social media.
Mashable confirmed with the Federal Bureau of Investigation that the agency was aware of such reports.
“The FBI is aware of the offensive and racist text messages being sent to individuals across the country and is in contact with the Department of Justice and other federal authorities regarding this matter,” the FBI said in a statement to Mashable.
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The text message, which had slight variations but similar content, told the recipient that they had been selected to “pick cotton at the nearest plantation.” It also instructed recipients to be ready with their belongings at a certain time and wait for a vehicle to pick them up. One version of the message congratulates the recipient and is signed by a “Trump supporter.”
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Reports on social media indicated that black students at the University of Alabama, Clemson and Alabama State had received the message. Benjamin Johnson, assistant vice president of media and public relations at Ohio State University, confirmed to Mashable that students had also received the text message.
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Johnson said the messages were reported to the university’s Office of Institutional Equity, which handles complaints related to harassment and discrimination. The university has also provided support to students who received the text.
FOX 2 in Detroit reported this that black women in the area had received the text, and FOX5 in Atlanta receive similar messages.
It is currently unclear who is sending the messages. There was a spike after Trump’s election in 2016 ‘hate incidents’, This is evident from a study conducted at the time by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The FBI told Mashable that it encourages members of the public to report threats of physical violence to local law enforcement authorities.
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