Is lynch a racist term

Answer 1

Technically, NO. Lynch was originally someone's surname. It also was used in the American west to denote hanging someone of any color - and most of the West was White prior to 1900. "Let's lynch him!" a crowd might yell about the (White) gun slinger.

However, lynch and lynching became terms frequently associated with Slavery and African-American history, especially in the South post-Civil War times. So to a person of African-American descent, hearing a White person refer to lynching might cause immediate concern and a feeling of racist targeting even when the White person was only referring to lynchings in a historical context.

It's unfortunate that so many words have been used to hurt people and that actions along with words quickly recall pain of ancestors.