Can you be "a" racist?

In discussions surrounding (living or deceased) individuals who’ve been targeted for cancellation, the question often arises, “Is he a racist?” The presumption being that, if the answer is in the affirmative, the individual in question should indeed be cancelled – or at least suffer some penalty. Defenders of the accused will rush to point out that his views or actions have been mischaracterised, and the dreaded label does not apply to him. Meanwhile, detractors will try to show that the opposite is true.