I was gonna respond to this in the replies at first, but seeing discussions among fellow animators and aspiring show-runners made me wanna throw my hat in the ring.
You should be more afraid of being racist than looking racist.
What white/nonblack people need to understand is: it's not about edgy humor, offending people, or getting "cancelled." There is real, tangible impact to racism.
I remember being a teenager in the mid 2010s, hearing people throw the F and N word around like party confetti, then say it was my fault for getting offended. "It's just a word! If you're offended by it, then you're the one giving it power."
To put it into perspective for nonblack people, it's like hearing someone say "I identify as an attack helicopter." Yes, it's a joke, but it signals what kinds of ideologies they accept. It's no accident that people like Pewdiepie amass a huge alt-right audience.
Thus, if you're going to apologize for being antiblack, whether it was yesterday or ten years ago, don't explain yourself. It doesn't matter if it was "just a joke." Nobody cares if you grew up conservative or that it's Tuesday on 4chan. It doesn't make you look better, or make the racism any less hurtful. Saying "I didn't know" is okay, but you still have to apologize.
Secondly, acknowledge what you said or did was wrong. Acknowledge all of it, not just the least egregious examples. Say why it was wrong.
Shame and guilt are uncomfortable, and that's okay. Sit with it. Meditate on it for a while. Then figure out what to do it about it. Don't let people try to comfort you with "No, you didn't do anything wrong! It's them making a big deal out of it," because that creates an environment where black people feel unwelcome and unsafe.
Most importantly, it isn't enough to say "BLM" or "Racists DNI."
Moving forward, will you listen to black people? Will you celebrate black media? Will you make black friends? Will you denounce your favorite creator they've been consistently antiblack?
If your best friend makes a racist joke, are you willing to pause the game and say "Hey, that's not cool"?
Being an ally is inconvenient sometimes. When you dedicate yourself to being anti-racist (especially if you were racist before), you'll probably get pushback from people. Especially your friends. Some might get mad you for harshing the vibe, or being "too woke." Unfortunately, you'll have to get used to this.
TL;DR, everyone get more pro-black NOW ‼
(an addendum, since it'll probably come up: i hope it goes without saying that nobody should be receiving death threats or gore. that is completely unproductive.)
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