What do the words “God Bless America,” “Spam” and “Discrimination” have in common? One might think the answer is “absolutely nothing,” but not so on the Nextdoor app.

Nextdoor is a social media app designed to help users connect with their communities and share local information. Libs of TikTok tweeted purported screenshots indicating that one user wished others “a wonderful 4th of July weekend” and posted an image of stacked hay bails with the words “God Bless America” painted on them. The screenshots show that the platform removed the post “because it may have broken guidelines: Spam and Discrimination.” But a spokesperson for Nextdoor told MRC Free Speech America that the post “is not in violation of our Community Guidelines.” 

So why was it censored? 

The spokesperson claimed that “comments to the post related to national politics resulted in its removal.” Meaning that the user who made the initial post did nothing wrong. [Emphasis added.]

Libs of TikTok’s screenshots of the Nextdoor notifications tell a very different story. “A team of viewers voted to hide [the post] because it was determined to break guidelines,” the notice reads. It lists “spam” and “discrimination” as the broken guidelines. The notice also explained that “No racism, hateful language, or discrimination of any kind is tolerated on Nextdoor.” The notifications in Libs of TikTok’s screenshots refer directly to the post and not to comments on the post.

It’s unclear whether the platform itself or the user’s neighborhood moderators removed the 4th of July post, but the spokesperson for Nextdoor defended the decision to remove the patriotic content. “We have policies and dedicated spaces for important non-local topics, such as national politics, and empower communities to moderate violating neighborhood content.”