Officials and universities in several U.S. states condemned racist text messages that were sent to Black residents on Wednesday. The messages, which had almost identical language, told the recipient they had been “selected for cotton picking.” 

In a statement, the FBI said it was aware of “the offensive and racist text messages sent to individuals around the country” and said it is in contact with the Justice Department and other federal authorities.

The texts were received by people in states including Alabama, Texas, Georgia, Florida, Maryland, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Ohio, CBS News found. NAACP President Derrick Johnson condemned the messages and said they represent an “alarming increase in vile and abhorrent rhetoric.” 

The texts were sent from numbers with area codes in at least 25 different states, CBS News found. By Thursday, several numbers were disconnected, while others went to voicemail that identified them as TextNow users, a provider that allows people to create phone numbers for free. 

TextNow said in a statement that it had “learned that one or more of our accounts may have been used to send text messages in violation of our terms of service,” adding that it shut down the accounts as soon as it became aware.

“We do not condone the use of our service to send harassing or spam messages and will work with the authorities to prevent these individuals from doing so in the future.”

CBS News spoke to one of the individuals who sent a version of the text. The person, whose area code was linked to Fort Wayne, Indiana, said the message was a prank before they abruptly ended the call. Subsequent requests for comment went unanswered.  

Officials report widespread messages

The Virginia’s Attorney General’s Office told CBS News it is aware of the messages and “unequivocally condemns them,” urging recipients to contact local law enforcement and the FBI if they believe they are under threat. 

The Atlanta Police Department in Georgia told CBS News they are aware of the texts and are not investigating at this time, but urged residents to report any suspicious messages. 

Several schools and universities also said their students received the texts. 

Clemson University Police Department in South Carolina said they received reports of students receiving racist texts, while some Black students at the University of Alabama also received the messages, according to the student newspaper. 

Some students at Ohio State University received the texts as well, school spokesperson Benjamin Johnson told CBS News. “We have reported the messages to the Office of Institutional Equity and are offering support services. We are aware that this is happening nationally,” said Johnson.

Lower Merion School District in Pennsylvania warned parents in a letter Thursday that middle schoolers received racist text messages. The school district did not characterize what the text messages said. 

Maryland’s Montgomery County said in a letter to families and students that local law enforcement and the FBI are aware of these messages, and that “law enforcement in some areas have announced they consider the messages low-level threats.”

Recipients describe fear 

CBS News spoke to two residents of Atlanta who reported receiving the messages. Devereaux Adams, 27, said he felt “afraid and hurt” when he received the text on Wednesday afternoon.

Adams said it’s “very confusing” because he can’t tell where or how the person sending the texts got his contact information. “I don’t feel safe at all,” Adams said. 

Another Atlanta resident, Monet Miller, 29, said she felt scared after receiving the messages. She said her friends in North Carolina also got the text.

“I knew it was a prank but to see that so early after the election I was shook. Just made me be more cautious of my surroundings and where I go,” Miller told CBS News. 

Fort Lauderdale resident Corryn G. Freeman said she received a racist text at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday from a local number she did not recognize. “It just really sparked fear. It sparked anger. I believe that they know that I’m a Black woman or a Black person, which is why they would target me with that type of inflammatory racism,” Freeman said.

After posting about receiving the message on social media, Freeman said two of her friends reached out to tell her their kids, both Black, received similar racist text messages.

“It’s not fair that they have to have to process this level of racism after an election that they did not participate in. But because of the boldness of whoever this is post-election, they are subjected to it,” Freeman said.

contributed to this report.

President-elect Donald Trump announced late Thursday that his campaign co-chair Susie Wiles will serve as his White House chief of staff come January, the first woman to ever hold that position. 

“Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my 2016 and 2020 successful campaigns,” Trump said in a statement. “Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again. It is a well deserved honor to have Susie as the first-ever female chief of staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud.”

Wiles is known as a formidable political operative who prefers to work behind the scenes, rather than on camera. Trump asked her to come to the microphone when he declared victory early Wednesday morning, and she declined, preferring to stay out of the spotlight. 

Wiles has managed to not just curry but, more critically, keep Trump’s favor while working in a high-profile campaign role, managing the ambitions, personalities and egos in Trump’s orbit. 

Wiles used to work for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, helping secure the governor’s office for him. But DeSantis’ relationship with her soured, and Trump world brought her into the fold. Wiles helped team Trump defeat her former boss in the Republican primaries. 

Wiles’ father was the late Pat Summerall, a famous sports broadcaster. Now 67, Wiles has worked behind-the-scenes roles shaping and guiding politicians in Florida for four decades. 

The chief of staff role is a demanding one that involves managing the president himself, in addition to senior White House staff, and by extension, the hundreds of people who work in the West Wing. But it also involves mapping out and executing a president’s policy objectives, ambitions and legacy. 

Trump had four chiefs of staff during his first term, and parted with some of them on uncomfortable terms. Trump’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, John Kelly, has said Trump meets the definition of a fascist, and warned against a second Trump term. Reince Priebus, Mark Meadows and Mick Mulvaney also served in the role, although Mulvaney was only ever an acting chief of staff. 

contributed to this report.