Ever since Elon Musk closed a $44 billion deal on Twitter on Thursday (Oct. 27), the platform has been inundated with racial epithets — and the rise in N-word usage is disturbing, to say the least.

Just 12 hours after Musk’s Twitter acquisition, a report from the Network Contagion Research Institute found that the use of the N-word “has increased nearly 500 percent from the previous average,” according to The Washington Post.

The NCRI also found that the barrage of racially derogatory tweets like the N-word has been from anonymous trolls looking to “test the limits” of Twitter since Musk’s purchase with users on 4chan encouraging others to “amplify derogatory slurs” — all in the name of “free speech.”

“I can freely express how much I hate n*****s … now, thank you elon,” one anonymous user tweeted, according to The Post. Another tweet laced with racist, antisemitic slurs read, “Elon now controls twitter. Unleash the racial slurs. K***S AND N*****S.”

Since Musk’s takeover, Black Twitter has been pushing back against the sudden rise in hate speech on the platform, calling for swift action.

“It’s really telling to see how many people want lies, racism, homophobia, and bigotry to be a part of their daily Twitter feed now that Elon has taken over,” actress-activist Malynda Hale tweeted. “I can’t imagine having people view me as the catalyst for their hate. That, sadly, says a lot about who Elon is.”

“Saving every racist tweet to prove that the new Twitter is causing harm and violence to Black People. People only understand when they lose money,” wrote Billy Dixon, under the username atwmpastor.

Twitter user BrooklynDad_Defiant! shared a screenshot of an N-word-filled tweet from another anonymous user, writing, “This is new Twitter.”

See how Black Twitter and other users on the platform have responded below.