Words matter. Meanings of words matter. Exactitude of speech and writing matters.
You can tell that most of the people throwing the word "racist" around (also homophobe, misogynist, sexist, privilege) don't really know what the word means.
Critical Theory believes that anybody who is "white", or who refuses to acknowledge the existence of SYSTEMIC racism (no one is seriously discounting individual examples of prejudice), or who will not disavow or apologize for their "whiteness", or fully embrace the godless Black Lives Matter political movement, is a racist and a white supremacist. To these people, you are literally evil incarnate, because you were born evil, if you are "white". They make their hatred of men, and the fair-skinned, and Christians, and heterosexuals very clear.
There is a word for people like this.
bigot: one who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.
- American Heritage Dictionary
They are bigots.
So when people start in with their hatred or disdain for "whiteness" or "white people", or any grouping of people deemed evil by this new religion of critical theory, it is acceptable to call them what they are.
They are bigots.
With all respect, I couldn't disagree with you more. Not because I support the Liberal Orthodoxy, but because I don't think your approach works very well.
It appears to me that progressives indeed understand "racist". They clearly understand that it's a word they can repeat that publicly renders their subjects irredeemable. The problem is not that they need to fix their usage of the word... the problem is us. We're the ones that give these unintelligent lifeforms the power behind that word. If every accusation of the slang "racism" was simply ignored, the word eventually becomes powerless - which I argue is a GOOD thing.
Remember a few decades ago when we used a different word? We didn't call anyone "racist", we accused people of prejudice if it was true. But the reason no one uses that word anymore is because it doesn't carry the power we have allotted to someone yelling "racism".
If you want to take back power, ignore them. If you want to argue, force them to use a different word or phrase. Disrupt their cries and force them to speak in logical communication, not accusatory slang. It's pretty difficult for one of these ranting lunatics to prove to me that I have 'prejudice'. It's difficult to prove to me that I am guilty of 'racial discrimination'. If they want to talk with me, they have to use my words. If all they want to do is yell "racist" or "racism", they get ignored like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum.