Sex Slaves Sold as Law Created Illegal Immigrants: Lewis Lapham

The first major restriction of immigration to the U.S. was directed at the Chinese, who came to build railroads and dig gold. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 created a brand new phenomenon -- the illegal immigrant.

Undocumented and beyond the reach of the legal system, workers could be endlessly exploited, especially in the sex trade. In China, Chun Ho was sold by her mother to a procuress for 200 Mexican dollars. When she arrived in the U.S. in the 1880s, a criminal gang, or tong, bought her for $1,950 gold.