As a white person I always saw the term honky, or cracker for that matter, as a sign of just how much more potent white racism was than any variation on the same theme practiced by the black or brown.

When a group of people has little or no power over you institutionally, they don't get to define the terms of your existence, they can't limit your opportunities, and you needn't worry much about the use of a slur to describe you and yours, since, in all likelihood, the slur is as far as it's going to go.

What are they going to do next: deny you a bank loan? Yeah, right.

So whereas "------" was and is a term used by whites to dehumanize blacks, to imply their inferiority, to "put them in their place" if you will, the same cannot be said of honky -- after all, you can't put white people in their place when they own the damned place to begin with.