At least one University of Alabama student is among many people across the country who have received a racist and threatening text message Wednesday instructing people to report to a plantation to pick cotton. The messages, many of them addressing people by their first name, have sparked outrage and condemnation.

The messages appear to be targeting black people the day after Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election.

A friend of a University of Alabama student posted an example of one of the messages, which read: “Greetings (name scratched out)! You have been selected to pick cotton at the nearest plantation. Be ready for pick at 3 pm sharp (no belongings need). Our Executive Slaves will come get you in a brown van, be prepared and present for pickup. You will be searched down once you enter the plantation.” The text also included a group assignment, referring to the recipient’s group as “B.”

The university confirmed the incident and issued a statement expressing their concern. “It is our understanding that individuals across the country have received these disgusting messages,” a spokesperson said. “This has been reported to authorities, and we’re asking anyone with information to come forward.” The university also encouraged students who had received similar messages to contact the Office of Student Care and Well-Being for support.

Officials from the University of Alabama confirmed the incident and issued a statement expressing their concern. “It is our understanding that individuals across the country have received these disgusting messages,” a spokesperson said. “This has been reported to authorities, and we’re asking anyone with information to come forward.”

Similar messages with slightly different wording have been reported in other areas of the country.

One of the individuals targeted was Sam Burwell, a photographer with 13News Now in Norfolk, Va. The television station shared Burwell’s experience with the unsettling message.

The message, which addressed Nurwell by his first name, said that he had been assigned to a group labeled “W.” Burwell noted that a cousin in Richmond received a similar message, though with a different group number.

The Virginia Attorney General’s Office quickly responded, condemning the messages as “disgusting” and urging anyone who felt threatened to contact law enforcement or the FBI. In a statement, the AG’s office emphasized that authorities are taking the matter seriously, though it is unclear whether an investigation is currently underway.