June 6, 1993, on the shore of Long Island — an amazing, terrible spectacle. A leaky tramp freighter, The Golden Venture, run aground in pummeling midnight seas.

It had come from halfway round the world, by way of Africa, with a hold full of would-be illegal Chinese immigrants. Half-starved, disoriented, tumbling out in the surf. Some drowning.

They were just part of a huge trade, run out of New York’s Chinatown, smuggling humans into America. "Snakeheads," the smugglers were called.

This hour, On Point: The snakeheads, underground Chinatown, and a wild chapter in pursuit of the American dream.

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Patrick has been discussing the book in an extended online exchange with sociologist Sudhir Venkatesh at Slate.

The book's website offers notes on the key characters, maps of the Golden Venture's voyage and the Chinatown neighborhood, and links.

Here's a video trailer showing Chinatown's streets and the restaurant run by Sister Ping:

In an On Point blog post, Tom Ashbrook recalls his days on the "snakehead" beat as a rooking reporter in Hong Kong for the South China Morning Post.

Also check out WBUR's "Inside Out" documentary "Snakeheads and Slavery."