“Does this man really think that racism did not exist before Darwin?”
Of course racism existed, but Darwin gave racists a pseudoscientific rationalization.
“Darwin gave racists a pseudoscientific rationalization.”
Society has never demanded, sought after, or bothered with any kind of rationalization for anything having to do with race. It is the default position of every society. It use to be called tribalism. It is such a default that the Leftists use the red flag of racism 24/7 to quell and mislead any opposition to their agenda.
Check out the pre-Darwin political cartoons in the United States (Northern).
And yet. For the first century after Darwin it was Creationist Christians who gave racists a pseudoscientific rationalization by promoting the theory that non-white races had been created as "the beasts of the field"