Does a definitive answer of "at least it wasn't racist" make this appreciably any better? Does it make them any more likely to get a teaching job after this?<
On the first question: yes, making a bad joke is better than being a racist. On the second: also probably... yes, tbh. Not saying it wouldn't harm her career but less that everyone thinking you're racist.
It also doesn't change the core argument the teacher is making in the story. "You lumped me in with a bunch of racists because I was white. I took down the image because it was offensive. Obviously. Why would I leave it up if it was offensive?"<
Completely agree. Claiming reverse racism is almost always shitty thing to do. I'll happily concede that it's even less likely the school is racist.