It’s just like plain old “bringing civilization to the savages” kind of racism.
Racism also explains why the elites of a lot of Western nations had markedly different reactions to the Ukranians being attacked by the Russians compared to the Palestinians being attacked by the Israelis: Ukranians are seen as “people like us” whilst Palestinians are seen as “muslims” whilst it’s the Israelis that are “people like us” (an image they spent a lot of time and money cultivating in the West).
You can almost see the little racist mental wheels turning around in the minds of some Western politicians who use the “anti-semitism” accusation to try and bat away criticism of the actions of Israel: even if Israel did represent all Jews (which many, many Jews will tell you it does not), only a profoundly racist person would think that a country representing a specific etnicity makes acts which would be unacceptable if done by others be acceptable because of the etnicity of those who did them.
If there is one thing this has really made sharply clear in a lot of nations in the West is that our leaders deep down are racists and hypocrites who talk a good talk when it suits them whilst having no humanist principles at all.
(Kudos for the ones in Spain and Republic Of Ireland who have shown themselves as being made of a different cloth)