South, the word itself when capitalized has racist undertones and is whispered in polite company.
If someone calls you "Southern" he don't mean you're from Antarctica.
BTW, I have met very few Yankees who had anything even approaching "parlor manners". Their children were routinely saying "Yeah" to their elders while we were being taught to say "Yes Sir" and "Yes M'am", regardless of the race of the elder we addressed. YMMV
South has little to do with "racist undertones."
Talk to a black man in ATL. He's going to tell you he's from the "Dirty South."
Talk to a white man from Alabama. The "South".
The only people who consider the South first in terms of racism kow nothing of the place.