When I tell people, paraphrasing Socrates, that ignorance is the root of all evil, I find a lot of adversity
Large part of this could be culture. Growing up with a (Theravada) Buddhist upbringing, ignorance being the root of all evil was almost common sense. Sometimes 3 roots are mentioned; Greed, Hate & Ignorance. Texts mention greed and hateas something that is easier to get rid of. In case you are interested you can start reading this blog written by a physicist: https://puredhamma.net
Yeah, right, I knew that in Buddhism there was also a similar idea, and perhaps also in Hinduism, I'm not sure, and it doesn't surprise me, because it seems to be quite common sense to me as well when I think about it, but it is not what I have verified when I tell it to other people, it is probably something cultural as you say.
I'll surely take a look at that.
Cheers!