We are pleased to announce our forthcoming hybrid Migration Dialogue, organised in collaboration with the SCMR at Sussex on January 28th, 1-2.30 (UK time).
We will welcome Dr Tunay Altay, a long-standing GenSeM member, who will present his work on
Building and Breaking Trust: Postmigrant Political Actors and the Limits of Migrant Political Participation
Political trust, defined as citizens' confidence in political institutions, is a cornerstone of democratic legitimacy. However, when trust is broken or absent, particularly among marginalized groups like migrants and non-citizens, it can lead to a decline in political participation and legitimacy. Drawing on participant observation and 36 in-depth interviews (2022–2024), this study explores how political trust is formed and fractured in the face of exclusionary policies and the mainstreaming of far-right rhetoric in Germany. Against this backdrop, postmigrant political actors mobilise moments of disillusionment, harness emotions such as anger and hope, and build community-based infrastructures—festivals, cultural work, and civil society initiatives—that function as counterpublics for political voice and trust-building. Ultimately, the study proposes a conceptual shift toward understanding political trust as a reciprocal and co-constitutive process.
For online participants, please register https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/dr-altay-building-and-breaking-trust-gensem-scmr-migration-dialogue-tickets-1980862152020?aff=oddtdtcreator where you will also access the Zoom link for the talk.