Frequently Asked Questions

Danger levels (1, lowest, through 5, highest) are an editorial assessment based on the sources described on the Sources & Methodology page -- things like historical records, hate-crime statistics, government data, and documented reporting. It's a judgment call informed by those sources, not an automated score.

No. Entries describe locations, groups, or businesses that have allegedly engaged in, or been reported to have engaged in, anti-Black conduct or heightened risk, based on our cited sources. An entry is not a court finding, a conviction, or proof in a legal sense -- see the Disclaimer for the full explanation.

A mix of historical records, books, hate-crime and government statistics, court and consent-decree data, human-rights reporting, video archives, and "boots on the ground" reporting from the community. The full list is on the Sources & Methodology page.

Yes. Circumstances change -- a business can close, a listing can be refuted or new sourced information can come in. If you know of a specific listing that needs an edit, simply go to the Suggest An Edit page and we'll see what we can do.

Go to Submit a Threat from the menu. It's a short form right on this site -- no account or login needed. You can submit up to 3 times per day (across all three submission forms combined). Submissions are reviewed and verified against sources before anything is added, so it won't appear on the site immediately.

Go to Submit an Anti-Black Business from the menu and fill out the form. Like threat submissions, no account is needed, and every submission is reviewed and verified before it's added.

Not entirely -- every submission requires a name or alias, an answer to whether you're a Foundational Black American (plus a short background question either way), and an email for follow-up. None of that is published or attached to the listing itself; it's only used to help us verify the report and, if needed, reach you. Those answers are saved to your browser (not shared with anyone else using the same WiFi/network) so you're not asked again on your next submission from that same browser, and you can update them at any time. Unresponsive or unverifiable submissions are simply not added.

It's part of weeding out trolls and spam, and the answers get factored in when we're assessing a report -- but you do not have to be FBA to submit, and your answers don't gate whether something gets added or not. Regardless of how you answer, everything you submit is still cross-checked and researched like any other submission. Your alias, that answer, and your email are saved to your browser so you're not asked again every time from that same browser, and you can revise any of it the next time you submit a form.

It goes into a review queue rather than appearing on the site right away. A site admin checks it against sources, and may reach out using whatever contact info you provided if something needs clarifying. It's then added, adjusted, or declined -- submitting the form isn't a guarantee it'll be added.

Usually because it couldn't be verified against a credible source, it was a duplicate of an existing entry, or there wasn't enough detail to act on. If you believe there was a mistake, use the Contact page with as much detail (and sourcing) as you can provide.

Specifics and sourcing. Helpful examples: a documented incident with a news article, court record, or firsthand account attached; a precise location (address or intersection, not just a city); a business's verifiable anti-Black conduct with something to point to (a statement, a video, a pattern of complaints) rather than a one-off bad experience. "I heard this place is bad" or "I just don't trust this area" isn't something we can act on without more to go on -- we have to know, not just suspect, and we may ask you for that evidence before anything is added.

The 3-per-day limit is shared across all three submission forms combined and resets 24 hours after your first submission that day -- it exists to prevent automated spam, not to discourage genuine reports.

No response is treated the same as an unverifiable submission, and it won't be added. We only reach out when we genuinely need clarification to verify something, so a real answer (even a short one) is usually all it takes to keep things moving.

Use Suggest An Edit (also linked right on the entry's own page). Select which list it's on, say what should change and why, and include a source if you have one -- edits are reviewed the same way new submissions are, not applied automatically.

Use Suggest An Edit and describe exactly what's wrong and, ideally, how you know (a link, a firsthand account, etc.). We can't make changes based on "I heard" alone -- verifiable details get acted on much faster.

Use Suggest An Edit with your evidence (e.g. proof of new ownership, a correction to the underlying report, documentation the conduct described didn't happen), or reach out through the Contact page. Listings are only changed based on verifiable information, the same standard used to add anything in the first place -- see the Disclaimer for more information.

Go to The Map Version from the Browse menu. It shows every mapped Threat Database entry and Anti-Black List entry as a pin or shaded zone, colored by danger level. Use the search box to jump to a specific entry, the checkboxes to filter by danger level or Anti-Black List status, and click any pin or zone for details.

Threat Database pins and zones are shaded from light pink (danger level 1) to dark red (danger level 5) -- the darker the shade, the higher the danger level. Anti-Black List pins are gray (dark gray if still operating, lighter gray if shut down) rather than colored by danger level, since that dataset isn't about physical risk in the same way.

Scroll down on the map page to "Get This on Google Maps" and click to load the Google MyMaps version. Make sure you're signed in to your Google account first, then open that map (or its share link) and look for a star or "Add to My Maps" option to save it. Once saved, it should appear under Saved → Maps in the Google Maps app on your phone, so you can pull it up anytime without coming back to this website. (Google's exact menu wording changes from time to time -- if it looks different, look for anything mentioning "Your Maps" or "Saved Maps.")

They're two views of the same underlying data. The website's map (the default one on the map page) is built directly into the site, updates the moment new entries are published, and has search/filtering built in. The Google MyMaps version is a periodically-updated snapshot, useful mainly because it can be saved directly into your Google Maps app for offline-friendly access on your phone.

It asks your browser for permission to use your device's location, then centers the map near you with a small pulsing marker so you can see what's nearby. It's entirely optional, only runs when you click it, and nothing about your location is sent to us or stored -- it stays in your browser.

This is a known issue on Google's end (not specific to this website's KML file) that has affected many users importing KML, CSV, and Excel files into Google My Maps. The most reliable fix: upload the KML file to your Google Drive first, then in My Maps use Import and select the file from Drive instead of uploading it directly from your computer. If that still doesn't work, try signing out of your Google account and back in, clearing that site's cookies, or using a different Chromium-based browser (Chrome or Edge).

This is almost always a formatting issue, not the location being missing. The safest, most reliable format anywhere on this site -- the search box, "Near Me," and the Route Planner's Start/Destination fields -- is just City or Town, State (for example, "Decatur, GA" or "Atlanta, Georgia"). A full street address usually works too, but the address-lookup service behind it can get tripped up by a few specific things: a comma breaking up the street address, an apartment or suite number ("Apt 4B", "Suite 200", "#12"), or a directional abbreviation like NW/SW/NE/SE. For example, "123 Main St, Apt 4B, Atlanta, GA 30301" can fail where "123 Main St, Atlanta, GA 30301" (apartment number dropped) succeeds, and "500 Peachtree St NW, Atlanta, GA" sometimes needs to be spelled out as "500 Peachtree Street Northwest, Atlanta, GA" instead. If an exact address keeps failing, try removing the unit number, spelling out the direction, or just searching the city and state instead -- for routing and for finding nearby entries, that's almost always close enough.

Yes. Go to Download the Data to get either dataset as a CSV file (openable in Excel, Google Sheets, or any spreadsheet program). It's updated as the site is updated, so re-download it periodically for the latest version.

It's a way to keep your own copy in case something ever happens to this website, and it's easier to search, sort, or filter a large dataset in a spreadsheet than by clicking through pages. It's also the most efficient way to review everything at once if you're doing your own research.

No -- this site doesn't have public accounts, and blog comments would require one to prevent spam and impersonation. If a post raises something you want to respond to, use the Contact page instead.

Updates, context, and deeper dives connected to the Threat Database and the Anti-Black List -- background on how entries get sourced, explanations of terms used on the site, and similar. Check the Blog for the latest.

This site is brought to you by Black Truth United and his supporters (see Contributors). Right now we only have Cash App and Patreon. Thank you in advance for your support.

There is a lot that goes into making updates and changes to the website. It is a lot of effort to simply properly maintain it as is. That being said, we do prioritize suggestions from Patreon members and frequent contributors to the platform. If you are already a contributor, feel free to reach out via the email listed on our Contact page, and we'll see what we can do. If you would like to contribute and then ask for a new feature, you can do so, but please be aware that, due to cybersecurity threats and other concerns, a suggested feature may not be added. See Contributors for where you can contribute and see fellow contributors. Thanks in advance for any donations.

Use the Contact page. Be as specific as you can -- for a bug, what page you were on and what happened; for a suggestion, what you'd want it to do.

See the Contact page for the current best way to reach us. Please keep inquiries genuine -- this is run by real people with limited time.