NYT - New Wave of Offensive Texts Targets Hispanic and L.G.B.T.Q. People

The F.B.I. is investigating messages that told people they would be deported or transported to a "re-education camp." They came after racist texts were sent to Black people.

By Kate Selig

Nov. 17, 2024, 4:14 p.m. ET

A wave of offensive text messages and emails has gone out to Hispanic and L.G.B.T.Q. people in recent days, according to the F.B.I., coming on the heels of a barrage of racist texts that were sent to Black people in the wake of the election.

The F.B.I. said in a statement on Friday that some recipients of the latest messages were told they had been selected for deportation. Others were instructed to report to a "re-education camp" for L.G.B.T.Q. people, the agency said, an apparent reference to conversion therapy or other coercive practices aimed at altering a person's sexual orientation or gender identity.

The messages were the latest in a series of offensive content that stared popping up just hours after the presidential race was called for Donald J. Trump the morning after Election Day.

Black people in over a dozen states reported receiving texts that addressed them by name, told them they had been selected to "pick cotton" and ordered them to report for slavery. Some of the messages also made a reference to Mr. Trump -- some even claimed to be from his administration -- but a spokesman for his campaign said it had "absolutely nothing to do with these text messages."

Misogynistic social media posts also surged in the aftermath of the election, with phrases like "your body, my choice" and "get back to the kitchen" proliferating online.

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