Mr. Kha Van Nguyen is a Vietnamese-American shrimper living in New Orleans East. Nguyen was born in 1950 in Phat Diem, in the north of Vietnam. In 1954, when Vietnam was divided into North and South, he moved with his family first to Da Nang, then My Tho and Can Tho, finally settling in Vung Tau in Phuoc Tuy Province, South Vietnam. Mr. Nguyen helped his father catch fish to sell to the market. When Mr. Nguyen was thirteen years old, his father died so he quit school to become a fisherman to help support his mother and four siblings. In 1969, at age eighteen, Mr.

Khang V. Dang is a Vietnamese-American shrimper living in Biloxi, Mississippi. Mr. Khang V. Dang was born April 20, 1954, one of eleven children, in the port city of Vung Tau in southern Vietnam. Mr. Dang’s parents originated from the Go Cong district in the Mekong Delta region. He learned fishing and net making from his father and grandfather; his mother cooked and baked and sold her goods, along with fish and shrimp, in the market. Mr. Dang joined the Army of the Republic of Vietnam in 1971, serving as security for his home area of Vung Tau until 1975. Mr.

Le Van Dong is a Vietnamese-American shrimper living in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Mr. Le Van Dong was born January 9, 1958, one of three children, in My Tho, South Vietnam. In 1968, Mr. Dong moved to the port city of Vung Tau, South Vietnam. Mr. Dong’s father was a guard in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnamese Army), and took responsibility for raising his young children upon the early death of Mr. Dong’s mother. Mr. Dong began catching and selling fish at the age of fourteen to help support his family. Mr.

Leslie Hood is a commercial fisherman in Long Beach, Mississippi.

Louis Lipps (b. 1950) is a crabber, owner of The Crab Trap Restaurant, and crab marketer Mr. Louis Lipps was born on September 24, 1950, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Mr. and Mrs. Frank Joseph Lipps. After finishing high school, Lipps entered the seafood industry, crabbing, shrimping, and fishing. At the time of this interview, he was the owner and operator of The Crab Trap Restaurant in Frenier, Louisiana, as well as his crab marketing business. His children are Kenny, Dennis, and Brian Lipps, all born in New Orleans.

Mike Le is a Vietnamese-American shrimper living in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Mr. Mike Le was born in 1953 near the town of Rach Gia in the Kien Giang Province of South Vietnam, where his family had a coconut and rice farm. In addition to farming, his father taught martial arts.  Mr. Le escaped from Vietnam by boat with his uncle, cousins, and others, totally fifty-two people, in 1978. After spending five months in Pulau Tengah, Malaysia, he landed in Lawton, Oklahoma in 1979. Soon after, Mr.

Mr. Muoi Pham is a Vietnamese-American living in New Orleans who is a tuna boat deckhand. Pham was born, the youngest of ten children, on October 8, 1957, in Phan Thiet, Vietnam. His parents originated from North Vietnam; his father fled from the Viet Minh to Phan Thiet where he met Mr. Pham’s mother. Mr. Pham quit school to begin fishing with his father, as deckhands, at age eighteen in Phan Thiet, a fishing village. Mr. Pham was imprisoned in reeducation camp in 1977 but escaped after two weeks.

Nicholas Alfonso was born on May 23, 1965, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Jerry and Ramona Alfonso. He is married to Lisa Christofi Alfonso, and they have two children, Kristy and Misty. Alfonso is a commercial fisherman and a member of the St. Bernard Coastal Advisory Board and the Knights of Columbus. He was interviewed by Stephanie Scull-DeArmey for the University of Southern Mississippi Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage on April 24, 2012. Alfonso currently resides in Louisiana and has been a commercial fisherman for a significant period.

Nick Collins, born in 1971 in New Orleans, Louisiana, is a fourth-generation commercial fisherman primarily involved in oystering. His family's business, the Collins Oyster Company, has a longstanding reputation along the Gulf Coast and nationwide. Collins' expertise in oystering has been passed down through generations, shaping his deep understanding of the industry. 

Oliver Goldsmith Brown IV is a retired oil field engineer who worked on a sailing, commercial fishing vessel as a teenager in the 1950s in the Gulf of Mexico. Brown was born on December 3, 1940, in Morton, Mississippi. He grew up in Morton and later moved to Mobile, Alabama, where he lived with his uncle and aunt. Brown's family had a history of involvement in the fishing industry, and he began working as a fisherman at a young age.