When I saw that episode again a couple of years ago, it first struck me as 'racist', but then I considered the following.

• The Federation has all sorts of human groups colonizing planets either prior to or under the aegis of the Federation and the protection of Starfleet. One notable example comes to mind: that doomed Irish themed colony (primitive, but high reproduction rate), which was then off-loaded unto that other doomed colony of (Anglo-Saxon) clones.

• Why couldn't an African group colonize a planet and start their own civilization? It might have even been done so before the Federation became a thing. And wouldn't that be a progressive thing? Finally a colony world where Africans are the dominant racial demographic.

• Progressives are always blathering about multiculturalism and using moral relativism to denounce criticism of other cultures being primitive. Well, this is one of those space-faring human colony worlds that has maintained its traditional African cultural traditions. They may seem primitive to you, but that's just because you're a racist and a bigot, and no one really likes you. ;)

Don't get me wrong. That episode was crap.