Affiliations: [a] University of Bielefeld, PO Box 100131, 33501
Bielefeld, Germany. Tel.: +49 160 36062003; E-mail: viktoria.spaiser@uni-bielefeld.de | Fundacion Universidad de las Americas Puebla, Business
School, anta Catarina Martir, San Andres Cholula, Puebla, Mexico | City University of New York, Staten Island, NY,
USA
Abstract: In this paper, young people's political participation on the
Internet in Germany will be analyzed by statistical means and on the basis of
survey data, comparing two groups: Germans (the majority group) and a minority
group, consisting of young people from Turkey and various Arab countries, who
share a religious affiliation. The young people from a Turkish or Arab
background turned out to be particularly politically active online and offline,
despite being rather socioeconomically disadvantaged. Statistical models
presented in this paper show that this is probably related to their grievances
caused by discrimination experiences because of their religion. Generally, the
results suggest that disadvantaged minority groups may appropriate the Internet
in order to raise their voice, although with some constraints.
Keywords: Political online participation, young people, minority groups, second-level digital divide
