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Racist spam text messages are now being reported in multiple states
Columbus Dispatch reporter Laura A. Bischoff analyzes racist text messages sent to Black Americans in multiple states, including Ohio.
Racist text messages are sent to black Americans in Ohio and around the nationin which they are told that they have been selected for enslavement and are assigned to pick cotton on a plantation.
The widespread posts are reported in multiple states and screenshots are going viral on social media sites. The messages vary in details, but follow the same basic script.
Students appear to be some of the intended recipients.
“Some students have received these hateful text messages,” said Ben Johnson, spokesman for Ohio State University. “We have reported the messages to the Office of Institutional Equity and are offering support services. We are aware this is happening nationwide.”
Columbus State Community College spokesperson Brent Wilder confirmed that students at the college have received spam messages. College officials could not quantify how many students.
“This is racism at its highest,” said Columbus NAACP President Nana Watson. “I believe it is a hate crime as I see it.”
Mary Banks said her 16-year-old daughter received a hate text message containing her full name at 8:12 p.m. on Wednesday. Some of her daughter’s friends at Columbus City Schools received similar messages.
Banks said she is not surprised that racist hatred is emerging. “I feel like white supremacy has gotten stronger after the election. That’s my personal opinion.’
FBI, Ohio Attorney General’s Office aware of racist text messages
In a tweet on its federal agencies.
“As always, we encourage members of the public to report threats of physical violence to local law enforcement authorities.”
In response to the FBI tweet, Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican representing Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, on his X account: “You’re probably sending them all. Pack your bags.”
Republican Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office is also aware of the text messages and has had a team look into them, his spokeswoman said.
The messages appear to come from phone numbers with the Ohio area code. A check of some numbers shows that they are landline numbers that cannot send text messages. That could be a sign that the text messages are part of a spoofing scam.
Spoofing finishes it off it appears that a call or text message is from a known contact or local entity.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate incidents across the country, said in a statement that the text sent to young black people “is a public spectacle of hate and racism that makes a mockery of our civil rights history.”
“Leaders at all levels must condemn anti-Black racism in any form, whenever we see it – and we must follow our words with actions that advance racial justice and build an inclusive democracy where everyone feels safe and welcome in their community,” said Margaret Huang, president and CEO of SPLC.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Dispatch reporter Sheridan Hendrix contributed to this report.
Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations in Ohio.