Engagement and Belonging: Association Work and Political Education of Muslim Young People

Consensus and Conflict Department

Project head: Prof. Dr. Sabrina Zajak

Young people with a migration background or other ethnic or religious identities often do not get involved in established clubs and associations. The project explored the question of what obstacles exist for these young people to get involved in youth association work. Which associations explicitly address young people with a migration background and pursue a (youth) political purpose? To what extent do the associations of young people with a migration background (VJM) or migrant youth organisations (MJSO) differ from "recognised youth associations", and how are they networked with them? The project also investigated the ways in which belonging, but also exclusion, are constructed. The aim of the project was to talk to the respective youth organisations about organisational change, political education work and membership recruitment and to develop concrete proposals for action to promote belonging and equal opportunities.

Results: In Berlin and Hamburg, 200 youth associations with migration-related plurality (JVmP) were studied. These have become important actors in recent years, but have not yet participated equally in youth association work. The reason is a lack of professionalisation and institutionalisation due to a lack of finances. But also the lack of recognition as youth political actors, for example because they are perceived as religious organisations or cultural institutions, plays a role.

Funding: Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Institutional funding)