Students are expected to go home for long breaks.
Yes, there are racist people. Generally not the majority and there is certainly a matter of degree. If you are asking are there people who march with torches shouting racial slurs I would say few to none. The racism trends more towards “there is no race problem in America and people who say there is are just playing identity politics.”
Generally international students are celebrated at BS but it can be lonely if you are the only one from your country. It can also be hard if you are used to being in a homogenous population that looks just like you to go someplace where you are distinctly a minority at a PWI.