Conrad's Heart of Darkness

Joseph Conrad, while setting out to stick it to the imperialist man, shows how deep racism runs. His portrayal of the "savage" African natives, their culture (or lack thereof), and even speech establishes, if not his belief in the 'white man's burden,' a belief in white and European superiority.
While reading the excerpt from Heart of Darkness, I couldn't help but notice the frequency of the word 'black' as an adjective. However, it's very rarely black men, it's mostly black shapes, black limbs, black heads, etc. The few times any Africans are labeled as men, they are in a "proper" subjected status.
"Six black men advanced in a file, toiling up the path. They walked erect and slow, balancing small baskets full of earth on their heads, and the clink kept time with their footsteps. Black rags were wound round their loins, and the short ends behind waggled to and fro like tails. I could see every rib, the joints of their limbs were like knots on a robe; each had an iron collar on his neck."
If they weren't slaves, Conrad's Africans were either "black shadows," that lay dying in the shade, or wholly uncivilized creatures that melted into the darkness of the jungle. The image of the Africans is also starkly contrasted to that of their white overlords. Marlow is impressed by the trading company's chief accountant's ability to dress well and, "in the great demoralization of the land he kept up his appearance." Just a few paragraphs earlier, Conrad describes the unkempt demeanor of "one of the reclaimed," a 'tamed' savage. "One of the reclaimed, the product of the new forces at work, strolled despondently, carrying a rifle by its middle. He had a uniform jacket with one button off."
Chinua Achebe describes Conrad's actual racism, and his untethered respect and admiration for the British (with ivory calves that could be made of marble). Conrad's attack on imperialism, in Achebe's opinion, just became a stone upon which imperialists could sharpen their swords. Additionally, Conrad's liberal ideals of an end to imperialism seem to be overshadowed by his covert statement that imperialism should end, not for the betterment of those who are dominated, but to protect the fine European minds from becoming engulfed by the darkness of the uncivilized continent.
Could one argue that Conrad is not a 'bloody racist'? I guess it's possible, although the evidence in his own writing and in Achebe's criticism certainly make it more difficult. Any possible defense I could think up has already been destroyed by Achebe's attack. The one thing that stuck me, however, was in the description of the Company's chief accountant, and his answer to Marlow of how he keeps his appearance so well. His response, "I've been teaching one of the native women about the station. It was difficult. She had a distaste for the work," to which Marlow narrates, "Thus this man had verily accomplished something." To me, this comeback seemed not like admiration for the accountant's efforts in breaking a wild soul, it seemed to be one more tack on the seat of imperialism. Again, however, Conrad's liberalism does not extend to equating himself with any Africans, and his goal of an age without imperialism isn't for as noble ideals as we would like to believe.