‘Racism’ is a fraught term.  I try not to us it. It involves two elements – an assertion that people can distinguished from other people by reference to their racial origin or colour, and that they can be denied rights or opportunities as a result of that distinction.  A clear example would be a club or theatre denying entry to people of colour – that is, by allowing entry only to white people.

A theatre in London will put on a play about slavery and on some nights allow entry only to people of colour – on those nights, they will deny entry to white people.  That course falls squarely within the definition of racism.

What is the rationale?  Because of the treatment of people of colour in the past, they are entitled to pursue a course that they would otherwise condemn.  Some might call this ‘playing the victim card.’

That looks to me like: ‘We are entitled to be racist in this case because we have suffered from racism in the past.’  And that looks to me to be a simple invocation of the notion that the ends justify the means.  And it apparently matters not that the people complaining of racism are now promoting it.

And that looks to me to be snapshot of a lot of the evil of the world today.