FBI investigating racist text messages sent to Black students in Oklahoma, other states

The FBI is investigating racist text messages being sent to Black people across the country, including in the Oklahoma cities of Tulsa and Edmond.

According to a post on X , the text message to one Tulsan read:

"Greetings (individual's name), You have been selected to pick cotton at the Oklahoma Tulsa Cotton Plantation. Be ready at 5AM SHARP, Thursday November 7 with your belongings. Our Trump Executives will come get you in a Brown Van, be prepared to be searched down once you've entered the plantation. You are in Plantation Group B."

The individual who received the text in Tulsa is the granddaughter of a descendent of Black Wall Street business owners and a Greenwood genealogist, according to a post from Black Wall Street Times editor Deon Devon Osborne.

A spokesperson for the Tulsa Police Department said the department had not received any reports regarding the text messages.

A student at Edmond Public Schools received a similar message, according to a mother's post on Facebook. The school district told The Oklahoman it has not been contacted about the incident, nor heard about it happening to any other students. The Edmond Police Department said it has not received any reports about the text messages.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation released the following statement :

"The FBI is aware of the offensive and racist text messages sent to individuals around the country and is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities on the matter. As always, we encourage members of the public to report threats of physical violence to local law enforcement authorities."

The Southern Poverty Law Center condemned the text message in a statement:

"The text sent to young Black people, including students at Alabama State University and the University of Alabama, is a public spectacle of hatred and racism that makes a mockery of our civil rights history. Hate speech has no place in the South or in our nation," said Margaret Huang, SPLC president and CEO. "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 every person feels safe and welcome in their community."