Democratic practices of self-organization among refugee youth in Germany: Relating to the hegemonic public sphere and the state

This article examines the political practices of Jugendliche ohne Grenzen (JoG), a self-organization founded and led by young refugees in Germany. By shedding light on their social and institutional exclusion and contributing to a redefinition of democracy, JoG highlights a “democratic difference” in their practice—the divide between existing democratic regimes and the principles of equality and freedom to which they aspire. Leaning on theories of radical democracy, we can analyze these organizing processes as emancipatory struggles for “equaliberty.” These young people emerge as agents of democratization, who are developing their political subjectivity and are able to disrupt oppressive border regimes and institutionalized hierarchies.