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'Enjoy your life while you have it.' Detroit state rep. gets another racist, threatening voicemail

Posted at 5:48 AM, Jun 09, 2021
and last updated 2021-06-09 06:51:03-04

(WXYZ) — A racist and threatening voicemail has once again targeted State Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson from Detroit.

The Detroit lawmaker said she began getting calls last year after calling out a witness during Rudy Giuliani's testimony before the Michigan House Oversight Committee.

Related: State Rep. Cynthia A. Johnson from Detroit posts racist voicemail saying she should be lynched

Like previous threats, this one also centers around the lie that the 2020 election was stolen.

"Enjoy your life while you have it, I guess, maybe write a will real quick," the voicemail said.

Related: Michigan lawmaker disciplined for threatening Trump backers

Michigan State Police are investigating the voicemail. Most of it we can't share with you. It included racist slurs specifically against Black women to threats of rape against Johnson's children and plans to slit her throat.

The woman on the other end of the line makes it clear she wants Johnson dead.

"We've got long-range shooters. You might be going to get groceries. Boom, dead," the voicemail said.

Johnson represents the 5th Michigan House District, which includes much of southwest Detroit.

Related: Man charged with making bomb threat to Michigan Capitol, threatening life of Detroit state rep

"I was not even a minute into it and I had to pull over. It was just horrific," she said of the voicemail.

Whoever made the call seemed to want Johnson to know who they were, though the voicemail doesn't clearly give the name.

"I don't know the person, I don't know the bot, whatever it might be, I don't know," she said.

The voice, appearing to be from a woman, uses the n-word multiple times, threatens to slit Johnson's throat, and spouts the baseless lie that the election was stolen.

Johnson sits on a Republican-led committee that heard those baseless allegations of election fraud from former President Donald Trump's personal lawyer and others.

Johnson was later removed from her committees after a Facebook video responding to the threats where she said, "this is just a warning to you Trumpers, walk lightly."

"I was talking to those in our community to not allow people to walk over you, not allow people to take advantage of you, not accept these kinds of threats," Johnson said.

She tells us she's received more than 8,000 hate-filled or threatening emails since then.