By Magaly Muñoz

Students in the San Francisco Unified School District received disturbing racist text messages in the days following the Nov. 5 General Election.

The messages specifically targeted Black kids with texts saying “you have been selected to pick cotton” and “you are in Plantation Group X”.

The Associated Press reported that these types of messages have been sent to dozens of Black youth and adults across the country. The FBI and other government agencies are investigating the texts.

Schools have reported that students were already feeling uneasy and anxious after the announcement of former President Donald Trump winning the presidential election and the texts added to their stress and high emotions.

SFUSD Superintendent Dr. Maria Su and SF NAACP President Dr. Amos Brown issued a joint statement condemning the racist attacks, saying “we will not tolerate hate in our city.”

The statement said the district will be partnering with the Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families (DCYF) to provide support for those affected. Students who received the texts will have access to wellness support and resources from the community to foster inclusive environments.

Additionally, the district will be working with law enforcement to further investigate these messages.

“Racism of any kind has no place in our community. We do not tolerate any instance of hate, bigotry or racism in San Francisco schools and we actively work to support SFUSD staff with implementing anti-racist approaches both in and out of the classroom,” the statement said.

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The SF NAACP held a town hall over the weekend to further renounce the racist attacks on Black families across the city. Brown called on the community to come together to support those who received the messages.

Members of the community also attended the SFUSD Board meeting Tuesday night to express their anger over the situation.

“We should not take lightly those texts,” Brown said at the meeting.

He claimed that this is not the first time that students have been victimized with texts in the district.

Brown called on the board to bring back programs that were benefiting Black students but were cut along the way by “persons in high places” in the district. He said that they need to continue to try to make a difference in the lives of Black students and “do it with dispatch.”

The district is encouraging people to report the messages if they receive them.

“Anyone who receives these troubling text messages should contact local law enforcement or your local FBI field office at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or visit FBI.gov/tips. You can also forward the message to the Federal Trade Commission’s reporting system at 7726, which helps your wireless provider block similar messages. Additionally, report the message within your messaging app by marking it as junk or spam, or submit a report to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.,” the district wrote.

People can also report hate incidents to visit CA vs Hate, which is a part of the CA Civil Rights Department. CA vs Hate can also be reached by calling (833) 866-4283 or 833-8-NO-HATE, Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 6 PM. The CA vs Hate line is available in over 200 languages.

This resource was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library via California Black Media as part of the Stop the Hate program. The program is supported by partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to https://www.cavshate.org/

Magaly Muñoz

A graduate of Sacramento State University, Magaly Muñoz’s journalism experience includes working for the State Hornet, the university’s student-run newspaper and conducting research and producing projects for “All Things Considered” at National Public Radio. She also was a community reporter for El Timpano, serving Latino and Mayan communities, and contributed to the Sacramento Observer, the area’s African American newspaper.

Muñoz is one of 40 early career journalists who are part of the California Local News Fellowship program, a state-funded initiative designed to strengthen local news reporting in California, with a focus on underserved communities.

The fellowship program places journalism fellows throughout the state in two-year, full-time reporting positions.

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