Attempting to rights the wrongs... waste of time?

Hey everyone,
So I want to talk about the James Weldon Johnson piece The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. I really enjoyed reading this piece and I want to specifically discuss with you guys the following passage:
“My [the millionaire] philosophy of life is this: make yourself as happy as possible, and try to make those whose lives come in touch with yours; but to attempt to right the wrongs and ease the sufferings of the world in general is a waste of effort. You had just as well try to bail the Atlantic by pouring the water into the Pacific (p.857).”
This passage really struck me; the honesty and selfishness of it is what most surprised me. I was so surprised that the millionaire told this to Johnson in order to try and convince him to go to Japan with him. I think what scared me most about this passage was that I realized, to some people, this statement is true. It saddens me to think that in 1912, despite slavery already being abolished, blacks were still fighting for equal rights. However, many felt this was a battle that could never be won and gave up! The millionaire supports his claim by saying that “We hit slavery through a great civil war. Did we destroy it? No, we only changed it into hatred between sections of the country: […] (p.857).
I want to know what you guys think of this. How do you guys feel about the millionaire saying “attempting to right the wrongs is a waste of time?”. At some point, do you think he’s correct to say this? I’m almost speechless when I think of this because I have no doubts that many blacks fighting for their rights felt powerless and hopeless. I want to end on a quote that I think really applies to this passage and gives hope to anyone fighting a battle that may seem impossible to win.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”