Nextdoor, the popular neighborhood social networking site that people use to share neighborly news too often reflects the racial biases and prejudices of its users, says a watchdog group that wants the racial profiling on the site to end.

The group, Neighbors for Racial Justice, prompted an Oakland City Council committee to meet with Nextdoor representatives and the company will present changes on Tuesday that it plans to make to help eliminate the problem.

“We are currently in the process of exploring feature options to improve the crime and safety section,” said company spokeswoman Kelsey Grady, who declined to elaborate on the proposed improvements. She said the company is aware that racial profiling is a problem on its networks and is “actively working” with the city of Oakland and neighborhood groups to eliminate it.

One of the Neighbors for Racial Justice members is Monica Bien, who recalled the first time she signed into the meet-your-neighbors website hoping to learn more about her Dimond District neighborhood in Oakland. Her jaw dropped.

The post that immediately repelled her, she said, was: “My boyfriend just saw two suspicious African-American men in a car. They drove their car up the street, made a U-turn, and parked.”

As far as Bien could tell, the only thing suspicious about the men was their skin color. And because the description was so vague, it could have applied to any black man in the Dimond.

“You say, ‘two black guys,’ then everyone in the neighborhood is afraid of every black guy who walks down the street,” Bien said.

To read the full story, go to http://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Profiling-in-Oakland-prevalent-on-Nextdoor-com-6778158.php