Empowerment, normalization, deconstruction: tracing inclusion in migration-related participation barriers in Berlin’s urban development

This article examines migration-related participation barriers in Berlin’s participatory urban development. Using the theory of trilemmatic inclusion, it transcends binary inclusion/exclusion frameworks in planning research, offering nuanced understanding of inclusive participation through social difference, distributive justice, and communicative action approaches. The study reveals five participation barriers: migrantization, target group approaches, white privilege, absent administrators, and structural racism, situated within the discourse on migration in urban development. The findings contribute to research on participation by highlighting the ambivalent role of participation barriers to achieve inclusive participation formats and provide recommendations for participation practitioners to critically address white privilege and foster empowerment.