iDEM interview with FEANTSA – Democratic participation in the EU and social exclusion: migration, homelessness and disability

Preventing social exclusion by providing access to democratic participation and community inclusion is one of our project’s main objectives. To understand more about the complex reality and diverse needs of people experiencing language barriers – such as people with disabilities, migrants and older people – we have collaborated with the European NGO FEANTSA. We interviewed FEANTSA’s Policy Officer Simona Barbu to learn about how migration, disability and homelessness intersect and how to include the voices of people who experience marginalisation in our digital democracy. 

Listen to the full interview here:

What is FEANTSA?

FEANTSA is the European federation of national organisations working with people experiencing homelessness. They have around 113 members across Europe and work on research, policy, and advocacy, calling for housing as a human right and fighting homelessness. They have recently published a magazine on the democratic participation of people experiencing homelessness, including mobile EU citizens. 

Simona Barbu explained that while sleeping rough is the most visible form of homelessness, there are different types, as outlined in the ETHOS framework, such as living in emergency accommodation or with family and friends. 

Social exclusion: risk of homelessness and barriers to participation 

Exclusion from democratic participation affects many people, but especially those who experience language or social and economic barriers. As Simona Barbu noted, people with disabilities, migrants and older people are at higher risk of facing homelessness and may encounter additional barriers to getting support. Additionally, she underlined that they often face significant structural challenges, such as discrimination and communication barriers that exclude them from participating in society. 

How can language exclude millions of people in the EU from democratic participation?

Simona Barbu outlined two reasons why language can exclude millions of people in the EU from accessing information and sharing their opinion. First, she pointed out that newcomers might not speak the language of their host country upon arrival. Migrants therefore might not know what their rights are to participate in different democratic processes. Secondly, she argued that the formal, lengthy or cryptic language of democratic processes may also deter different communities from participating. 

“Diversity offers us opportunities to develop, to learn from one another, to increase cooperation and critical thinking.”

How have FEANTSA members worked towards democratic participation for people experiencing homelessness?

Simona Barbu outlined two initiatives from their members. Valente, an organisation from the Netherlands, carried out a campaign in 2023 to provide accessible information in the form of simplified messages, ensuring that vulnerable citizens, like people experiencing homelessness, could be included. Their Irish member Focus Ireland also recently empowered people experiencing homelessness to participate in local elections. 

What EU democratic process would have benefitted from a tool like iDEM?

FEANTSA’s Policy Officer shared the example of the Conference on the Future of Europe, a European Commission initiative that ran from 2021 to 2022 in which a multilingual digital platform was created for citizens to discuss the future of the EU and potential reforms. She pointed out that not all profiles were equally engaged, stating that: 

“We need to expand and diversify outreach methods as you aim to do with iDEM project. It is not enough to make consultations open and public, we need to develop tools to empower and include the voices of people who experience marginalisation.” 

The importance of co-creating digital tools for democratic participation

To end the interview, we asked Simona Barbu to share any initiatives on digitalisation that could inspire our work at iDEM. She noted that in our world, where all aspects of our lives have become digital, we have to consider appropriate access to equipment (such as data plans, WiFi networks and charging stations) and support for the development of digital skills. 

Finally, she called for always keeping in mind the context in which these tools will be used:

“To make [new tools] efficient we need to always keep a focus on the social dimension. The discrimination that migrants face, or people with disabilities or those who experience homelessness […] these are very important to keep in mind when designing accessible tools, to make people feel included and not alienate them from the start.” 

As this interview has shown, it is important to consider different intersecting factors that create barriers to democratic participation. Digital tools, like iDEM’s, that seek to engage people experiencing language barriers should always consider the different needs of their users to be truly impactful. 

Thank you FEANTSA for participating and bringing such knowledge to this subject!