I... kind of think that discussing racism is hard and painful work, however you slice it. I don't think it's shameful to need to step back from it for a bit. There have been times that I've actually had to remind myself that it's all right to think about fun stuff and it's all right to have other interests.

Absolutely, and I didn't make that clear. I guess my point is that while there may well be good reasons for an individual stepping back at a given time, I think we do have to question that tendency in ourselves and as a group if taken too far (where "too far" is a complicated measure depending on context). Also I think that if you decide not to get involved then a post which is TOTALLY unrelated (like random kitten picspam :)) avoids the derailing problem I'm worried about.

I think there will always be conversations about race, so "waiting until it's died down" may not really be possible.

Yes. But for example, if there's a conversation specifically about "The ways different parts of fandom deal with race" then non-race-related meta about "The different parts of fandom" might best be delayed.

I don't know, it's possible I'm being overly paranoid but I thought it was worth asking the question.