Criminalized: The Anti-Migration Debate Fuels and Legitimizes Systemic Racism
Anthony Obst, Justice Collective
Racism on Trial is a campaign initiated by Justice Collective to reveal and resist racism in Germany’s criminal legal system.
Each year, criminal courts in Germany fine, jail, and sentence to probation hundreds of thousands of people. Due to systemic factors, people from racialized and migrantized groups bear the brunt of this punishment.
This is how racism operates in the deeply unjust world we live in. It acts as a key factor in organizing who has power and access to resources in society. Racism thus shapes who gets policed and punished, which leads to the mass criminalization of people from marginalized groups.
This mass criminalization is largely out of view for those not affected by it. Most people know little of the system’s day-to-day workings and how these reflect and entrench societal injustices. Those who are criminalized are often alone in court, without a lawyer or solidarity.
To change this, the Racism on Trial campaign:
- Documents racism in the courts through court observations, revealing the injustices we observe in court in our case archive and findings;
- Organizes for justice, which includes sharing resources for others to courtwatch as activism and for people impacted by these systems; and
- Shares the perspectives of other activists and communities impacted by and resisting the systemic injustices of the criminal legal system.
Join us.
Our findings
Over the last two years, we have observed and analyzed over 200 criminal court cases to understand racism in the courts. Our findings reveal systemic injustices as well as policy and procedural issues that shape people’s interactions with the criminal legal system.
Below you can click to read essays about our initial findings on the key systemic drivers of criminalization and punishment. We will publish new findings on a rolling basis, so do check back here regularly.
Cases from our archive
Every day, people face the injustices of the punishment system. Yet, what happens in court is often kept out of view for those not directly impacted by the system. Click on the cases below for more about people’s courtroom experiences, or search the case archive.
Case 22
A man is held in pretrial detention for months and sentenced to a fine of several thousand euros for selling cannabis. Although at the time of the trial, the legalization of cannabis consumption and further decriminalization of possession and supply is imminent, the court strongly condemns the defendant's actions. The prosecutor described them as “extremely reprehensible”.
Case 14
A young racialized man has spent over a month in pretrial detention. He is sentenced to a year and a half in prison, without probation, for six counts of theft. Playing a role in the proceedings was that he had been repeatedly stopped by police at a so-called “crime hotspot” (kriminalitätbelastete Orte). While some resulting cases against him were dropped, they added to the court’s perception of the defendant as having “criminal energy”.
Case 13
A man appeals a fine that was imposed on him because two police officers claim to have seen him holding a phone in his hand while driving. The officers have no recollection of the specific event, but the judge affirms the fine based on their statements. The defendant faces additional costs of around €300 as a result of the appeal to the fine on top of the €100 fine.
Case 7
In this case, a young man still paying off past fines is sentenced to pay €600 for theft of a sandwich and some chocolate. While the court nods to the fact that he likely committed the offense because he does not have money, in the end the judge says theft is “not a solution”.
Perspectives
Impacted people and communities, activists, advocates, and others have much to share about how they are building power to end racist criminalization and punishment. Read these perspectives below.
Criminalized: The Anti-Migration Debate Fuels and Legitimizes Systemic Racism
Anthony Obst, Justice Collective
Solidarity-based interventions in systems of racist violence: policing, punishment, and (mass) criminalization
Kampagne für Opfer rassistischer Polizeigewalt (KOP)
The intensification of state repression, marginalization, and militarization are currently leading to an increase in police violence, a rising number of arrests for poverty-related offenses, and the brutal (criminal) disciplining of “internal enemies”. In this situation, it is urgent to reflect on how we can link the fight against racist police violence and state racism more closely with other struggles to end dehumanization, exploitation, and widespread state violence.
Documenting racism in court: Interview with Justizwatch
Justizwatch
Jailing people for unpaid fines is about more than punishing poverty
Carmen Grimm, Bündnis zur Abschaffung der Ersatzfreiheitsstrafe
In Germany, people are incarcerated every day because they cannot pay a fine. Critics of this practice known as “Ersatzfreiheitsstrafe” are in agreement that a person’s economic status should not determine the severity of their sentence. The Coalition for the Abolition of Debtor’s Prisons agrees with this view – and urges critics to take a broader view attentive to the links between poverty and racism.
Organizing Resources
Check out our background guides on the criminal legal system and other inspiration for organizing.
What does the criminal legal system look like?
Infographics on the scope of the criminal legal system.
Demands for non-reformist reforms to the criminal legal system 2025
Non-reformist reforms to address the harms of the punishment system. Join us in fighting for real change now!
Why we watch court
An overview of courtwatching as a tool of abolitionist and anti-racist organizing, with details on why we watch court to challenge the punishment and criminalization of low-level criminal cases.
Resources for impacted people
A list of resources for people impacted by criminalization and their communities, including sources for legal and other assistance.
Join us!
Reach out to us if you’re interested in courtwaching, organizing for change, or if you are looking for information or solidarity courtwatching in your own case. No one should be left alone in court.