Among the ethnic gangs that rule America's inner cities, none has had the impact of the Jamaican posses. Spawned in the ghettos of Kingston as mercenary street-fighters for the island's politicians, the posses began migrating to the United States in the early 1980's, just in time to catch and ride the crack wave as it engulfed the country. Laurie Gunst's provocative expose of the Jamaican politicians' role in creating this problem is also a moving and compelling tale of suffering and exploitation. Leone Ross' substantial afterword examines further the issues raised by the book from a British and Jamaican perspective.