The “Outside Agitator” Myth
From the civil rights movement to today - the "outside agitator" is nothing more than a fear tactic
If you’ve been watching coverage of the protest actions nationwide, you’ve probably noticed the headlines shifting. “Chaos in Los Angeles” and large scale “unrest.” The right especially has began questioning who exactly is protesting. These tactics denouncing dissent are nothing new. Leading the narrative shift is a phrase with deep roots in American state repression: “outside agitators.”
Let’s rewind a bit.
After NYPD officers arrested over 130 people at Columbia and NYU in April, Mayor Eric Adams wasted no time blaming the unrest on unnamed “outsiders,” alleging that chairs and bottles were thrown at police. NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry went even further, suggesting that because protest tents looked similar across campuses, some shadowy external group must be coordinating things—and funding them. “Professional agitators,” he said, were using students as cover to sow disorder.
Emory University President Gregory Fenves jumped on the bandwagon, too—initially claiming that “highly organized, outside protesters” were behind an encampment that led to a violent crackdown involving police in riot gear, pepper balls, and professors slammed to the ground. But after the footage went viral, and it became clear that faculty and students were among those brutalized, Fenves walked it back. Sort of. He said he was “devastated.” But the damage was done—and the narrative had already served its purpose.
Same Playbook, New Protest
This isn’t a new move. It’s an old one. Authorities have been deploying the “outside agitator” trope for generations—as a way to delegitimize local dissent, shift blame, and justify repression. During the 1960s, civil rights organizers were painted as outsiders sent to stir up trouble in otherwise “content” Black communities. Never mind that those communities were already organizing themselves against segregation and voter suppression.
Even Dr. King had to respond to the smear. In his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” he wrote:
“Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.”
The same accusations were recycled during Ferguson, during the Parkland walkouts, and during the 2020 George Floyd protests. Remember when Trump called protesters “professional anarchists” and used federal agents to tear gas peaceful demonstrators outside the White House? That was the same script.
And now we’re watching it unfold again. Administrators and police aren’t engaging with the content of protesters’ demands—they’re fixating on who lit a car on fire and whether the people in the crowd are here legally.
Who Is Actually Protesting?
The irony is, this protest movement—like every one before it—is both hyper-local and deeply interconnected. Los Angeles is a city that is over 59% latino. An estimated 1 million residents are undocumented. Of course the community is showing up.
Meanwhile, protests in solidarity have sprung up nationwide. Not just in support of Los Angeles, but in support of their communities. Wednesday morning in Detroit, protesters converged on the federal courthouse after migrants there were detained. Nationwide, communities are coming together to stand up for the migrants amongst them. The protesters have deep ties to their communities and believe strongly enough in the cause to show up. That’s it.
Delegitimizing Protest Is the Point
Let’s be clear: this movement didn’t start with chaos. It started with clarity—with protesters standing up against ICE agents terrorizing their communities. The protest actions that have now caused a national controversy started as no more than 200-300 people. Hardly a riot in a city of millions.
The chaos started when Trump brought in the National Guard.
Aldon Morris, professor emeritus of sociology at Northwestern, summed up the strategy when asked about pro-Palestinian student encampments: “The notion here is that student protests aren’t really legitimate... so long as they’re framed as being taken over by outside agitators.” The same tactic is playing out now. Protesters in Los Angeles aren’t legal. They’re leftist lunatics. They’re not us. And what does that framing accomplish? It lets officials talk about anything but the brutality of Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
It Won’t Work
If history teaches us anything, it’s this: the more you repress a movement, the more it grows. The protests in Los Angeles exploded in size when Trump brought in the National Guard. Soon after, dozens of other demonstrations sprang up across the country. We saw the same thing play out with the pro-Palestinian encampments: When Columbia called in the NYPD to break up the protest, the movement spread to Yale, UNC Chapel Hill, and UT Austin. When videos of police brutality at Emory circulated, the narrative only expanded. We’ve literally watched this play out over the past week as videos from Los Angeles have taken social media by storm.
It’s a tired tactic, but Trump is using it nonetheless. He has spent the week delegitimizing protesters, casting blame, and portraying dissenters as “anti-American.” He’s laying the ground work for further crackdowns by the state — including our military.
As the administration escalates hostilities against protesters, remember that their rhetorical tricks are nothing new.