[cgriswald]

The problem with such reasoning is that whites do not benefit equally or wholly. A key component to English-style racism is that it was intended to keep all poor people down by splitting them along racial lines. Poor whites had it slightly better by design to keep them from joining up with other poor peoples in part for fear of losing what they had. The systems we have in place today are descended from that system (and when you know how to look for it, other similar systems not having to do with race are obvious). When you use phrases that, however true of some whites, impugns all whites, you’re perpetuating that system. This is true regardless of how complicit those whites have been. Even from a pragmatic view, it certainly doesn’t win any allies. To then defend such slurs by pointing to systemic racism is both somewhat ironic and also unconvincing to anyone who already finds it distasteful.