According to the Amadeu Antonio Foundation, self-organisations ensure that “those affected feel perceived and taken seriously and their voice is heard in public. They make a significant contribution to making their situation visible and sensitising the public to their concerns. In addition, together with those affected, they draw attention to areas of life where there is a concrete need for action in order to lend emphasis to their demands for societal acceptance and recognition. Self-organisations are often also involved in empowerment processes of their own group.” 388
Self-organisations often raise an identity-political claim to representation, even if in reality they only represent a small minority of the group. These activists legitimise their political claim to power as a fight for participation. In Germany, the “new German organisations” as well as the “Federal Conference of Migrant Organisations (BKMO)” form influential post-migrant self-organisations.389 In the education sector, in journalism, and in integration policy, their post-migrant influence is already deeply anchored; in some cases, these organisations are also directly involved in legislative procedures.390
As alleged advocates of the marginalised, self-organisations demand more state support for civil society. For code words such as democracy, cohesion, and integration, more tax money is to be distributed to their organisational structures.