Allegation that Muhammad was racist

Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Book 11:

Volume 1, Book 11, Number 662:

Narrated Anas:

The Prophet said, “Listen and obey (your chief) even if an Ethiopian whose head is like a raisin were made your chief.”

Here in this hadith he is focusing on the issue of obeying your chief/leader whoever he is. Infact he is advising all whites to obey the chief even he is black, thus trying to force home the point to some of the Arabs who may have been prejudicial that all men are equal regardless of colour. By pointing out the outward appearance or external features of an individual, one does not commit a crime. Especially at that time where the Arabs felt they were superior to the Ethiopians, what the prophet said was groundbreaking. If you had to describe someone of similar appearance with one word, what would you use? Are you going to criticize the prophet because he did not share your vocabulary?

By bringing up this issue the anti islamists have infact shown that the prophet was a man who saw no boundaries based upon race, but was someone who tried to bring equality amongst all colours

If he was a racist and wanted to call them raisin heads, he would’ve called them raisin heads without saying Ethiopian. He was referring to the shape of a raisin, as we all know there are golden, purple, red, BLACK raisins, so to assume the use of the word raisin is racist is entirely wrong.

Lets not forget what the prophet said in his last sermon:

“All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a White has no superiority over a Black nor a Black has any superiority over a White except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly.”