The Strength in a Voice

As I perceive, Spivak's "Can the Subaltern Speak?"  is trying to say that all of the power in language is dependent on the understanding and interpretation of communicated information.  So, the answer to the title's posed question is obvious.  The subaltern can speak.  The real question is "does anyone listen?"  By the very nature of being subaltern, the usual answer is no, or at least a great deal less than the majority listens.  So, effectively the subaltern can speak, but it is up to the listeners to give the subaltern a voice.  However, there is at least some power in the subaltern's speech, as at least someone will listen as a reasonable gesture of fairness.  Eventually, if the reason behind the subaltern's speech is deemed worthy by enough of these equal-opportunity listeners, the subaltern's voice will gain strength and garner at least some measure of influence in the system of things.  The subaltern will have a voice, but still lack a majority of influence.  So, the strength in any voice is in its ability to convey information and relate an understanding between communicators, but it is entirely up to the listener to imbue this power into the speaker's words.  I guess another way of looking at this issue would be to say that the subaltern cannot speak.  Only the listener speaks through their perception.