Why do some people who are racist pretend they are not?

Nowadays, being racist is frown upon, so they pretend so they won't look bad to others.

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What do you call racist? If I look at someone of a different color sideways, hold my bag tighter, take a few steps back... am I being racist? You don't know my color, and you don't know the other persons color, yet certain people would call that reaction racist. There's even a TV commercial just like that. I find that 'colored' people be they aboriginal (in any country), african, asian, ... anything but white European stock... are more sensitive to actions that could be racially driven. However, white people act the same way to other white people. So maybe it's not racism. Maybe they're scared of strangers. Period.

Many people don't want to be racist, don't think they are racist, know all the arguments against racism... but when faced with a situation they weren't prepared for, they realize that deep down they do in fact hold certain feelings. The real 'tell' is the question "How would you feel if your daughter married a person of the opposite color?". That one is hard to answer for many people.

I wouldn't even call that feeling racism. There is a conformity instinct in all of us. It was/is necessary for survival in societies without strict laws. It might work for us NOW to intermarry, but in the past it has torn societies apart.