Facebook apologises for flagging Declaration of Independence as hate speech

Phrase "Indian savages" believed to have triggered Facebook hate speech algorithm

The Liberty County Vindicator was vindicated (Google Street View)

Facebook has apologised after labelling a passage from the Declaration of Independence hate speech and removing it from the site.

Texas-based newspaper The Liberty County Vindicator was posting passages from the declaration to celebrate July 4, the USA's day of independence, when the social media giant removed a post containing paragraphs 27 to 31 of the famed document.

The newspaper received a notification from Facebook informing them that the post "goes against our standards on hate speech".

Facebook were quick to realise the mistake, restoring the post and sending an apology to the Vindicator.

The newspaper shared Facebook's apology on the site, which read: "It looks like we made a mistake and removed something you posted on Facebook that didn’t go against our community standards.

"We want to apologise and let you know that we’ve restored your content and removed any blocks on your account related to this incorrect action."

In a Facebook post, the Vindicator said: "The Vindicator extends its thanks to Facebook.

"We never doubted Facebook would fix it, but neither did we doubt the usefulness of our fussing about it a little."

Paragraphs 27 to 31 of the Declaration of Independence contain the following text: "[The King of Great Britain] has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection and waging war against us.

"He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

"He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilised nation.

"He has constrained our fellow citizens, taken captive on the high seas to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.

"He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions."

Casey Stinnett, the newspaper's managing editor, speculated that the phrase "Indian savages" might have triggered the hate speech algorithm.

Mr Stinnett accepted that the phrase is offensive, however he explained to the Daily Wire how "Jefferson, like most British colonists of his day, did not hold an entirely friendly view of Native Americans".