Addressing a Gandharva (Kabandha), Shri Rama said: "Listen, O Gandharva, to what I tell you - I cannot tolerate an enemy of the Brahmanas. He who without guile in thought, word and deed does service to the Brahmanas (the very gods on earth), wins over Brahma, Shiv, Myself and all other divinities."
Even Lord Sri Rama thought thus of Brahmanas and Brahminism.
Of course, this doesn't mean that all by birth Brahmins of this day are divine - the emphasis is on what a Brahmin should be like, what the concept is. It is not about birth - it is about dharma.
King Kaushika, a Kshatriya, changed his duty to become a Brahmana. Nothing is birth based. Unfortunately, instead of being duty based, people, unable to give up their carnal desires, and unfit to traverse the path of a Brahmana, portray it as birth based and vilify and oppress Brahmanas, and push the blame right back on them to negate any expose!
But alas, the pseudos of this country trashed Lord God Rama only... ha! What else is left in India...