re: Let me get this straight...
...when somebody says something derogatory about someone because of their membership in a group that is delineated by its collective beliefs: it's bigotry?
Uh...isn't it? Isn't that the entire definition of, for example, anti-Semitism?
bigotry
\Big"ot*ry\, n. [Cf. F. bigoterie.] 1. The state of mind of a bigot; obstinate and unreasoning attachment of one's own belief and opinions, with narrow-minded intolerance of beliefs opposed to them.
An objective observer might think that a lot of us seem to fall into this category, but of course, OUR views are logical and based in fact, not "unreasoning." Right?
The real truth, of course, is that it's "bigotry" when the person disagrees with you, but not if he agrees. The charge of "bigotry" nowadays is a political weapon in most cases, and has lost any real meaning.