Yes. He’s a writer and owns the implications of what he wrote. There is a more and a less benign way to interpret what he wrote ... but that’s his fault. Costs him credibility as a result.
Blah blah blah
Racism is just what everyone knows it is, which is when someone dislikes or negatively judges someone on account of their race.
The whole societal blah blah system blah blah was invented by people who wanna have it both ways.