The Struggle for Cooperation
In August 1944 American troops entered Paris and pushed to liberate France. The French endured hardships and suffering to achieve liberation, and after the violence had passed, they were subjected to privations, requisitions, shortages, cold homes, and curbs on their sovereignty. Living with the American presence posed challenges for the French, and while the two countries did not always see eye to eye on issues of common concern, these issues offered possibilities to work together; accord and cooperation often won out. In The Struggle for Cooperation: Liberated France and the American Military,1944–1946, author Robert Fuller examines how the French and Americans handled various matters that demanded cooperation, including the requisition of French property, the treatment of Axis prisoners of war, care for displaced persons, the disposition of war booty, dealing with the prosperous black market, the utilization of French transportation networks, GIs’ behavior, and the effective American takeover of the port of Marseille. Fuller establishes how all these issues offered the possibility of working together peacefully or in conflict and concludes that—more often than not—the results were positive and amicable.