Racist text messages invoking slavery have created a nationwide uproar after they were sent to Black men, women, and students in several states, including New York, Alabama, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee. The disturbing messages, which targeted individuals across various age groups, from middle schoolers to high school and college students, have raised alarm bells over the ongoing presence of racial hostility in modern society, amplified through digital platforms. These texts, generally identical in tone but varied in wording, have prompted multiple investigations by the FBI, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and state law enforcement agencies.
Though the sender remains unknown, it is clear that the message's impact was far-reaching. The text messages were not limited to adults, but also included students from a range of educational institutions. High school and college students, particularly in the South, were among the recipients, with reports emerging from diverse locations, from urban areas to smaller, rural communities. Some of the recipients were middle school students, raising additional concerns about the emotional toll on young people targeted by such messages.
The racist nature of these communications, combined with the specific invocation of slavery, made them particularly alarming. While the messages varied in specifics, they all carried the same hateful undertones, invoking a painful history of racism and oppression. The use of such a charged reference—slavery—sent a chilling reminder of America’s troubled past and underscored the persistence of racial hatred in the present.
The FBI quickly became involved in the investigation, coordinating with the Justice Department to track the origins of the messages and identify those behind the effort. The FCC also joined forces with federal and state law enforcement to probe the incident. State Attorney General offices, such as that of Ohio, launched their own inquiries into the matter, understanding the severity of the issue, which spanned multiple states and impacted various communities.
In California, Tasha Dunham, a mother from Lodi, was shocked when her 16-year-old daughter received one of these messages. The text not only addressed her daughter by name but directed her to report to a “plantation” in North Carolina, an area the family has no connection to. Upon looking up the location provided in the message, Dunham discovered it was the site of a museum. This revelation left Dunham shaken and deeply concerned, as it drew disturbing parallels to historical instances of forced labor and racial violence. She expressed that the fear this message generated was heightened by the broader societal tensions surrounding the recent presidential election.
Dunham said, “I wasn’t in slavery. My mother wasn’t in slavery. But we’re a couple of generations away. So, when you think about how brutal and awful slavery was for our people, it’s awful and concerning.” Her daughter, initially dismissing the message as a prank, was also troubled by the specific targeting, which felt personal and intimidating. The family immediately reported the incident to local law enforcement, believing the message could have more nefarious intent.
In Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, the messages were similarly widespread. At least six middle school students were targeted with the same hateful content. Megan Shafer, the acting superintendent of the Lower Merion School District, addressed the issue in a letter to parents, calling the messages "extremely disturbing" and stressing the gravity of the situation. She also emphasized that the messages were made all the more shocking by the fact that children were being specifically targeted.
Universities such as Clemson in South Carolina and the University of Alabama also reported that students received the disturbing texts. Clemson's police department issued a public statement urging students who received such messages to come forward. The texts’ reach was also felt on college campuses, where students often face significant stress and uncertainty, making the emotional impact of the messages even more profound.
At Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, a historically Black institution, the messages caused significant unease among students. The administration responded by describing the messages as “deeply unsettling,” but also reassured students that the texts were likely the work of automated bots or malicious individuals with no real credibility. Despite the reassurances, the incident underscored the persistent threat of digital harassment, particularly targeted at marginalized communities.
Missouri NAACP President Nimrod Chapel revealed that Black students at Missouri State University had also received the unsettling texts, which cited Trump’s electoral win and included derogatory comments, such as calling the recipients out by name and referring to them as "selected to pick cotton." This targeting of university students drew national attention, with police in Springfield, Missouri, being notified and starting an investigation into the matter.
Wireless providers have been made aware of the situation and have reportedly been working with urgency to block the phone numbers that were linked to these racially charged messages. According to Nick Ludlum, a senior vice president for the wireless industry trade group CTIA, wireless providers are aggressively taking action to stop these spam messages. However, the fact that such messages could still be transmitted on such a large scale raises concerns about the vulnerability of communication systems and the ease with which digital hate speech can spread.
David Brody, director of the Digital Justice Initiative at The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, reported that the messages had reached more than 10 states, including many in the South, as well as the District of Columbia. Local law enforcement agencies, including the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., are actively investigating the origins of the messages. Brody also pointed out that civil rights laws could be applied to hate-related incidents like this, emphasizing the need for a swift and coordinated response to digital harassment.
Several civil rights organizations have condemned the messages, including the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which released a statement from its president, Margaret Huang. She described the messages as a form of hate speech with no place in American society, asserting that such content was particularly dangerous due to its targeting of vulnerable individuals. NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson also strongly condemned the racist text campaign, calling it a “legacy of evil” that sought to perpetuate historical racial oppression. He noted that this form of targeted harassment was deeply disturbing and that it should not be allowed to become normalized in modern society.
The collective condemnation from civil rights groups, law enforcement, and the public serves as a reminder of the persistence of racial hatred and the need for vigilance in combating it, both online and offline. These events have sparked broader conversations about the intersection of digital technology, race, and hate speech, and what steps need to be taken to ensure that the digital space remains free from such malicious, harmful actions. The coordinated response from multiple agencies and advocacy organizations underscores the importance of standing against racial hate in all its forms and the need to protect individuals, especially children, from such targeted abuse.
