Unmasking The 'Outside Agitator' : Code Switch

Whenever a protest boils up, it's a safe bet that soon after, some public official will blame any violence, disruption or looting on "outside agitators" — mysterious outsiders who swoop in from out of town to stir up trouble.
It's a phrase that's familiar to us. We're hearing it to describe the protests against police brutality that are happening today. In 2014, we heard folks talk about the "outside agitators" who sparked turmoil in Ferguson. And it's been used throughout America's history of protest; notably, it was used to dismiss civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr. But what does it really mean?
To help us understand why we're hearing so much about outside agitators, we talked to Professor Peniel Joseph from the University of Texas at Austin. Here are snippets of that conversation, which have been edited and condensed for clarity.