This study explored the intersection of participation rights, politics, and culture in youth councils operating in a polarized socio-political climate. It drew on the case of youth councils integrating Jewish and Palestinian-Arab youth in Israel. Based on interviews with youth council members, adult leaders, and Ministry of Education officials, the findings portray the interrelated political, lingual, and cultural barriers hindering the participation of Palestinian-Arab youth. These barriers were embedded in top-down activities, practices, and structures, unintendedly importing unequal power relations into the councils. We argue that realizing participation rights in youth councils operating in diverse and conflicted societies requires adapting the councils to their participants, their locality, and the circumstances. These adaptations should acknowledge that youth participation is a multidimensional concept whose implementation is contextual, rely on a willingness to relinquish the common one-size-fits-all model of youth councils and aim to create participation spaces that challenge inequalities and social friction.