As was common in that time period, many Americans were not openly or overtly racist even though they had racist stereotypes and predispositions, but the idea of blacks and whites intermingling socially was a foreign concept. Jim Crow laws in the South were the order of the day, and while California was not the south, segregation was the general social understanding in the country at that time.
We see Candy and George using the N-word, again, not because they are overtly racist per se, but because it was so commonly used at that time, the term African-American or even negro just did not come up in conversation that often.
Lennie seems to understand there are differences between blacks and whites, both physically and in how they are treated, but he doesn't understand why or allow it to affect his actions much. He doesn't have the mental ability to.
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