Chapter 1 examines how Italians responded to the interracial encounters that took place during the war and in the immediate postwar years. In the midst of economic difficulties, fears of crime dominated public opinion, and foreigners were blamed (especially if they had a dark skin) along with the women who associated with them. The fraternization between Allied soldiers and civilians generated tensions that triggered frequent clashes between Italian men and the male occupiers, competing for the favors of Italian women. Interracial sex was often cast as a form of moral degradation, obscuring the genuine love relationships that also occurred between Italian women and non-white Allied soldiers.