Would simple generalizations about a specific race be considered racism?

IMO, and only IMO, any opinion or idea formed because of a skin colour or ethnic background is racist, even when it is a positive opinion...such as assuming athletic prowess based on the fact that a person is black or presuming a tidy and detail oriented mind is automatically linked to a German name.
However, it does not become, again IMO, bigotry until and unless a person allows these ideas to form the basis for how they treat a person.

Depends on the generalization.

Saying something like "All whites are from Europe" is a pretty good basic generalization for tis true, us crackers can trace our family line back to that general area of the globe.

Saying that all blacks (women chiefly) have a higher risk for lupus is a truth, however it is due to other genetic traits found in blacks more often than other races not because they are black. That is a good generalization.

A generalization like "all blacks are gang bangers" or "all whites are angry men" is a bad generalization which is based on stereotypes or popularized myths of cultures which does not reflect the diversity of individuals, I can tick of countless happy white men and countless blacks who are not part of a gang. And I can also tick of a few white gang bangers and a few angry black men.

Now if you clarify your statement with "Most" then you could classify a generalization as being a fact and not a racist remark. Example:

"Most blacks would never be caught dead doing 'country western'" This is a truth based on the small fact that there are no black country western singers - however it only applies to most since I personally know a couple of black cowboys who line dance - for the most part black culture does not identify with the Old West.

There is a fine line between truth of a generalization and a racist remark.

Yes there are racial/cultural connections that can be liberally applied to most of a specific group but care must be taken to stay within the realm of the factual and not tread to far in the realm of conceptual myth.

David

While I agree with both MrsS and David, I think the rules can be boiled down to a very simple truth:Not even identical twins are completely alike, so every human being deserves to be judged as a unique individual.If one keeps that in mind I don't think there is much danger of racist or bigoted behavior.

I think simple generalizations can be considered racism, but as long as someone doesn't speak or act on what they are generalizing, it shouldn't be a problem to anyone but them.