You’ve noticed that when sportcasters are calling boxing matches on TV, they always tell you which fighter is which based on the trunks they’re wearing. Occasionally the trunks are quite similar. “Héctor Rodriguez is the fighter in the white trunks with the blue piping, and Tyrone Jackson is the fighter in the the white trunks with the blue piping and little gold accents on the outer seams.” Ever wonder why they don’t say what everyone already knows, which is Héctor Rodriguez is the Mexican guy and Tyrone Jackson is the black guy? I’m sure the networks’ answer is: Because that would be racist.
Racist? You mean there is something shameful and unmentionable about having physical attributes that are characteristic of certain races and ethnicities? That attitude itself is insulting.
Then, is it because they don’t want to portray the fight as a fight between an black man and a latino? We can already see that for ourselves.
OK, so suppose both guys are, say, black. African American, if you please. So now you need to distinguish them by their trunks, even thought the ring announcer just told you who they were (“fighting out of the corner to my left…”)? Why? Because they all look alike?