Colonial rulers systematically silence native speech by labeling speakers as agitators.

Evidence

Balfour produces no evidence that Egyptians and “the races with whom we deal” appreciate or even understand the good that is being done them by colonial occupation. It does not occur to Balfour, however, to let the Egyptian speak for himself, since presumably any Egyptian who would speak out is more likely to be “the agitator [who] wishes to raise difficulties” than the good native who overlooks the “difficulties” of foreign domination. — Edward W. Said, Orientalism, 111

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to Gayatri Spivak’s ‘Can the Subaltern Speak?’ and the construction of the native voice; foundational for how later nationalism/Islamophobia readings treat who gets to speak.
• DEFINE: Exemplifies the silencing mechanism by which the colonial Other is denied agency and self-representation.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Edward W. Said, Orientalism, 111