Russian Trolls Tricked Americans in Brooklyn In An Effort To Sow Racial Division
Russian trolls tricked Americans into helping them sow divisions along racial lines leading up to the 2016 election and into 2017—even right here in Brooklyn.
A phony website called “Black Fist” paid Bed-Stuy based activist Omowale Adewale to hold self-defense classes geared towards African-Americans, Buzzfeed News reports.
The website, which is still up, contains little information, but describes the classes as “Organized by Black for Black,” and encourages attendees to “Be ready to protect your rights” and “Let them know that Black Power Matters.”
The contact, “Taylor,” got in touch with Adewale via Instagram, offering him money to run the classes in Queens and Brooklyn. They negotiated a rate of $320 per month.
While sometimes the classes weren’t attended, the troll farm paid for Facebook advertising and used their “Black Fist” Instagram and Facebook accounts, which had more than 100,000 followers.
However, Adewale grew suspicious when there were issues with payment, and because the “Taylor” who had contacted him didn’t discuss politics or activism.
The classes came to an end in May, and the false sites disappeared, but it wasn’t until recent reporting on the prevalence of Russian “troll farms” that Adewale started to make the connection.
“It’s really diabolical,” Adewale told the Daily News. “I detest Trump.”
An advertisement for the classes from Adewale’s Instagram can be seen below: