Yeah, Powers is a racist. One need only unpack his article, from his calling the homeless guy a "white boy" to his suggestion said "boy" was his enemy...
I have the ghost of Martin Luther King Jr. in my head like a life coach exhorting me to “be my best self,” “show compassion to those who spite you,” “turn the other cheek” and “don’t give our enemies more reasons to hate us.” I need to kick Martin Luther King Jr. out of my head. Go fuck another secretary Martin! I need to ask what this white homeless boy means to me.
...there's really no bottom to the OP's racism. And he hides behind a shield of historical oppression to protect himself from the otherwise natural consequence of being so extreme: Academic and public marginalization. (Having him write for HuffPo makes as much sense as finding Vox there.)
If I were to express such feelings on my personal blog about minorities- and no, I don't actually feel that way about minorities, but if I'd hypothetically lost my fucking mind - I might as well quit school now, get my tuition back, and find another line of work because I'd never be licensed in the profession for which I'm training.
That Powers can speak his demented mind like that is privilege - a privilege I lack. Hell, it's a privilege Steven Anderson lacked when he lost his business over public gay bashing.
That isn't to say white privilege is a myth. It's quite real. But Powers doesn't want to end racial privilege; he wants to flip it on its head.