where they see real tangible racism that threatens the safety of another not only are they ABLE to just walk away, they are able to rationalize it as the smart choice.

Maybe I was speaking too broadly for you. I don't trust racists not to be generally dangerous people. They're irrational, therefore unpredictable.

As my parents always said: "you never know who is hiding a knife, so be careful."

I don't confront people harassing other people, I don't confront people breaking laws, social norms or rules, because if they opt to be unpredictable, as a good many people are liable to be, that could mean a significant and unanticipated risk to my own person.

The only way to deal with unpredictable situations is to either understand the full risk and opt to accept it or remove the possibility of that situation.

I'm not risking getting injured for you or anyone else, so that leaves only the possibility of removing the situation. Condemn racism in group safety, such as a protest, or online, as I am doing now.

So no, it's not rationalizing something into something it isn't. If there is the possibility of harm, which I foresee as realistic, given the character of these people, that IS the smart choice, regardless of its convenience to you.

I never had a responsibility to you or anyone else to violate my sense of perceived risk to help you. So don't get so uppity and pretend like it's somehow some obligation I'm shirking. That fundamentally misunderstands what you can oblige another person to do.

You probably find that fact disagreeable as it is inconvenient, but I really do resent you trying to turn this into some narrative of white privilege.

If I were black, I'd do the smart thing too. What that might be is, probably outside my understanding. With that said, an interesting fact is I'm not asking you to accept racism, and I'm not asking you to personally endanger yourselves to "end" (what a farcical notion) it. At least personally, and if you can't be blamed for the actions of the rioters (and I wouldn't expect that you should be) you should at least reciprocate.