I do not believe Hancock's Atlantis theory; the specific Atlantean race teaching humanity knowledge.
I do though find his work interesting and believe he is onto something, regarding historical chronology, and that some knowledge could be younger/older in human hands than currently believed, and some of it taught to humanity by (known/unknown) others rather than simply discovered by humanity.
But if one did believe Hancock word for word, then just because the Atlanteans were in his view white, does not mean they had superior knowledge because they were white.
Nor does it demean those who learned, used, and further developed that knowledge/technology.
Which has been all of humanity.
The issue is that it sort of props up racist beliefs.
Does it mean he himself is racist?
Now, personally anytime someone wants to fight the mainstream opinion and claim that the race they happen to belong is the true origin of all of the unique and amazing civilizations it does raise a few red flags.
He characterizes the people his Magicians met and taught as poor ignorant savages/hunter gatherers that had to be taught by enlightened foreigners.
Instead of being able to figure it out for themselves.
When I interact with his fans they're deeply misinformed on the cultures. They think that pre-Dynastic Egyptians were hunter gatherers. That all ancient civilizations had a sudden leap into building cities and practicing agriculture and writing.
And it's a misunderstanding he encourages from how he presents the development of these civilizations.
He presents it as if hunter gatherers just woke up one day and decided to build pyramids.
And he does so by plumbing the wells of very old claims and research and stories from racists, colonials, and white supremacists.
If Hancock isn't racist, and he doesn't seem to be strictly speaking.
Then he's perfectly comfortable using them to further his ideas.
In his worldview instead of different groups of people inventing and developing and being inventive in their own right, the very foundations of their culture had to be given to them by an outside group.
Who yes just happen to be white.
At the very least he's bringing these ideas back to popularity.