After World War II, Trieste became an important point of passage for thousands of refugees who were leaving Yugoslavia and other Eastern European countries. In the early 1950s, the number of refugees who resided in the city pending emigration increased considerably, thus giving rise to some concern in the area. Paying particular attention to this critical phase, this essay analyses the way in which foreign refugees were portrayed by the town’s most circulated newspaper, the anti-communist and pro-Italian «Giornale di Trieste».