Agreed. However calling everything and anything you disagree with "racism" does not help. There are a lot of issues around the world that have nothing to do with racism
While this is definitely true (especially in today's political climate), the South was unusually obsessed with race. I agree that race was not the biggest thing everywhere in America, but southerners were super racist, as that makes them feel superior. The South was the most feudal and underdeveloped part of the Western world besides Eastern Europe. They cannot claim glory as Southerners, so they claim collective glory through the white race. Same thing with Eastern Europeans. Just look at any Southern politician from 1860's-1960's and at least half of it is racial (if not more). Racism was an effective tactic for the planters to maintain power. They really got the lower classes of the South by the balls. And I'm no commie, I just object to much of Southern conservative dogma which in most western nations would be considered far right. It is not centrist by any stretch.