The White Man's Burden is definitely a dangerous poem, it's bad to uncritically spread its message of simple cultural superiority. But lets not pretend that it

The White Man's Burden is definitely a dangerous poem, it's bad to uncritically spread its message of simple cultural superiority. But lets not pretend that it is some off-the-rails racist screed. We still do try to export our cultural values to developing nations (e.g. women's education to Afghanistan, or elimination of FGM in Africa) and are sometimes resented for it. We should be pushed to champion those kinds of causes, even if they are thankless. Now those cultural values certainly aren't spread in a vacuum; they are usually accompanied by other less-benevolent forms of imperialism. Exploitation isn't what Kipling is calling for; he is certainly racist, but he is trying to be benevolent.