The struggle of Vietnamese fishermen in Texas: they were persecuted by the Ku Klux Klan

PALACIOS, Texas — The sun had not yet fully risen when Vinh Nguyen made his first catch of the day.

For the next half hour, he worked methodically, separating slippery crustaceans from Matagorda Bay with his ungloved fingers. The famous Texas brown shrimp went in one bucket and the Texas white shrimp in another.

By noon, Nguyen caught enough shrimp to pocket about $600, a decent profit these days, but still less than in previous years, when a thousand dollars marked a good day.

Nguyen, 63, is one of thousands of Vietnamese refugees who settled along the Gulf Coast after the Vietnam War. Here, in peaceful fishing communities, they worked hard to rebuild their lives. In the meantime, they overcame the trauma of war and displacement, language barriers, and the deep-seated prejudices of local residents.

However, its most recent obstacle is beyond its control: the decline of the US shrimp industry.

Up and down the Gulf Coast, high fuel costs, a shortage of workers and an influx of cheap imports have made shrimp fishing a less viable proposition for anyone.

Some locals say overfishing and environmental factors like climate change have also led to a decline in the shellfish population, making it even more difficult to get a decent catch.

The first group of about 100 Vietnamese refugees arrived in Palacios in 1976. The city lies on green lands that stretch toward a sparkling bay. The population remains more or less the same, 4,400 inhabitants, and the center of town still has only one traffic light.

Vietnamese refugees were initially drawn to Palacios by the promise of jobs at a nearby nuclear power plant and a crab processing plant. But they soon focused their attention on shrimp and crab fishing.

Speaking English was not required in the water. And many of them had the right skills. In Vietnam, some had worked as fishermen and net makers.

However, it wasn't long before local shrimpers and crabbers felt threatened. The newcomers did not respect water rules, local residents complained.

Tensions reached their peak in 1979 in the town of Seadrift, about 70 kilometers off the coast of Palacios, when A Vietnamese fisherman shot and killed a white crab that had been harassing him around fishing territory.

A jury acquitted the fisherman after he argued that the shooting was in self-defense. The incident sparked fury among white fishermen, who in response bombed three boats owned by Vietnamese immigrants.

The small-town dispute soon escalated into a broader campaign in which members of the Ku Klux Klan burned several boats near Galveston Bay and burned crosses near the homes of Vietnamese fishermen. Tensions eased only after the nonprofit Southern Poverty Law Center, along with the Vietnamese Fishermen's Association, filed a federal lawsuit to stop the Klan's intimidation tactics.

Some Vietnamese immigrants who had fled began to return to the area. The lure of a life dedicated to shrimp and crab fishing was too strong.

Over time, relations improved. Fishermen who emigrated from Vietnam adapted to local rules that sought to sustain the shrimp population, such as not dragging their nets before dawn. They began to earn the respect of white and Latino fishermen.

Little by little, Vietnamese Americans became part of the fabric of the city. Restaurants serving Vietnamese food, such as pho and shrimp spring rolls, began to appear. In 2020, the city elected its first Vietnamese American Mayor, Linh Van Chau.

“Today, the Vietnamese are held in high regard and are a very prominent part of our city,” said Jim Gardner, the current Mayor of Palacios, who described Chau as a close friend and mentor.

AMY QIN. THE NEW YORK TIMES