2025/06/03 by Tae Jun Kim, Elias Steinhilper · 1 voice
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #German Colonialism and Identity Studies #Migration, Refugees, and Integration #German legal, social, and political studies
paper · doi:10.1080/01419870.2025.2508392
openalex publication_date 2025/06/03 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Scholars of racism have highlighted the ambivalences of antiracism arguing that it can sometimes serve as a strategy to immunize racism from criticism, thereby contributing to its perpetuation. This article draws on a unique population survey on racism in Germany (N = 5.003) which contains a novel set of items related to antiracist action and the denial of racism to empirically assess these claims. Indeed, our findings suggest that despite the broad willingness in the population to engage against racism, antiracist action can often coexist with racism denial, thus contributing to the reproduction of racist discourses. Yet, we also find nuanced patterns with those actively participating in demonstrations scoring much lower on racism denial compared to those engaged in other forms of action or those not engaging at all. This research underscores the necessity for a more comprehensive approach to the complexities of (anti)racism.