“A Small Group of Thoughtful, Committed Citizens”
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that has.”
So said the anthropologist Margaret Mead. At least that’s what most of us have been led to believe.
But according to the Institute for Intercultural Studies, this quotation cannot be verified. “[W]e have been unable to locate when and where [this quote] was first cited . . . We believe it probably came into circulation through a newspaper report of something [Mead] said spontaneously and informally. We know . . . that it was firmly rooted in her professional work and that it reflected a conviction that she expressed often, in different contexts and phrasings.”
Related: “The Duties of Educated Young People.”
Posted by Jonathan Rick in 
Scholars “use an intellectual scalpel…