(Photo Credit: Sharkshock/Shutterstock)
Reports of threatening texts rise following a second Trump presidency.
After election results came in Wednesday morning, UNC Greensboro sophomore Aimaya Mason was wrapping up her classes before meeting friends at the campus fountain. There, one friend showed Mason a series of disturbing, racially charged text messages she had received—messages targeting her, her cousin, and another friend.
Mason was in shock.
“The things we’re seeing in those text messages were like, ‘We’re gonna take you to a plantation,’” she said. “‘So get ready because we’re gonna bring you in a brown van.'”
The most unsettling part, Mason explained, was how the texts seemed to address each recipient by name, with targeted racist language. Her friend, who is Asian, received the message instructing her to be ready to “pick rice” by a specific time.
“I could tell it was just done with malicious intent,” Mason said, reflecting on the polarized sentiments surrounding Trump’s recent re-election.
Following Trump’s recent re-election, similar racist messages have reportedly surfaced across North Carolina, Alabama, Virginia, and other states, targeting Black Americans and people of color, including one reading:
“Greetings, you have been selected to be a house slave at Abingdon Plantation. Come to this address, 300 7th St SW, Washington, DC 20024 at 0500 tomorrow SHARP. With all of your belongings. This is mandatory. Our executive spaces will come get you in a Turquoise van, be prepared to be searched down once you enter the plantation grounds. You will be station at Plantation point L. Sincerely, Trump administration”
Although she didn’t receive a message herself, the messages directly targeting her friends left her shaken.
“Just seeing those text messages be spread around was just very disheartening to say the least,” Mason added, noting that these messages followed a “staged” photo of “Whites Only” and “Colored Only” water fountains on UNC Greensboro’s campus. “It definitely made me upset and angry, especially that people close to me were receiving them.”
As a first-time voter who supported Harris, Mason felt the messages were “psychological attacks” on minority communities, particularly those wary of Trump’s presidency.
“I think it’s really just kind of trying to knock us while we’re down, and just trying to get into our heads after the results from the election,” Mason said. “I know a lot of the rhetoric used by Trump supporters, and people who voted him in, have a lot of not so nice things to say about minorities or women. So it just really felt like it was just a little bit like a rub in our faces.”
These racist messages have prompted responses from state and federal authorities.
And, even though the messages seemed to express support for the Trump administration, Steven Cheung, a spokesman for the Trump campaign, told The New York Times that the “campaign has absolutely nothing to do with these text messages.”
The FBI stated Thursday that it is aware of the texts and is coordinating with the Justice Department and other federal agencies. North Carolina Attorney General and Governor-elect Josh Stein also posted online how “deeply appalled” he was by the messages, and that “we must combat hate and racism in all its forms.”
Stein confirmed that his office is aware of the messages and is “working with federal and industry partners to investigate the source of these robotexts.”
When Cardinal & Pine reached out, officials from Stein’s department were unable to provide information on how many complaints they’d received.
The response to these messages have also extended beyond government officials, with civil rights groups raising their concerns.
In a statement from the NAACP, President and CEO Derrick Johnson condemned the texts, calling them a “deeply disturbing” reminder of America’s historical injustices and a modern effort to deny Black Americans equal freedom and rights.
“The unfortunate reality of electing a President who, historically has embraced, and at times encouraged hate, is unfolding before our eyes,” said Johnson. “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.”
Other reports in the state are also circulating of planned attacks against Black Americans “from now through the inauguration,” prompting increased vigilance from authorities.
Additionally, on Election Day, officials also reported bomb threats made at voting precincts in predominantly Black communities, and in other communities that tend to vote for Democrats.
Anyone experiencing or aware of these messages is encouraged to report them to the NCDOJ via its online portal, by calling 1-877-5-NO-SCAM, or by contacting local law enforcement.
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