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GIs and ‘Segnorine’: an Entangled History of Post-war Sex Work (1943-1954)

Project description

Illegal prostitution in post-war Italy

Italy was occupied by the Allied forces between 1943 and 1954 and relations between the American soldiers (Gls) and the Italian prostitutes (called ‘segnorine’) were prohibited. The prohibition facilitated the proliferation of an illegal sex market. Italian prostitutes were targeted by Italian society because of their relations with the occupying forces and became victims of racist attacks as they also accepted Afro-American clients. The EU-funded Sex War-k project will study these cases and the interaction between gender and race in post-WW II Italy. It will also review the transcontinental role of sexist and discriminatory stereotypes. Finally, it will determine the identity barriers that conditioned how each side (American soldiers, Italians) saw the other.

Coordinator

UNIVERSITA DI PISA
Net EU contribution
€ 269 002,56
Address
Lungarno Pacinotti 43/44
56126 Pisa
Italy

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Region
Centro (IT) Toscana Pisa
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Other funding
€ 0,00

Partners (1)

Partner

Partner organisations contribute to the implementation of the action, but do not sign the Grant Agreement.

FORDHAM UNIVERSITY CORP
United States
Net EU contribution
€ 0,00
Address
East Fordham Road 441
10458 New York

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Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Other funding
€ 177 265,92