In 2005, her husband, whose family had been Louisiana shrimpers for at least five generations, made the difficult decision to stop fishing. He is not alone in this decision. Since hurricanes Katrina and Rita, eighty percent of Louisiana shrimp boats are now either tied up, not working or for sale.

From 2000-2005, imports of shrimp increased by more than 50% from about 380 thousand tons to about 580 thousand tons.  As a result, the price of small shrimp fell from $1 per pound to $0.35.  Fuel prices skyrocketed and then Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit. It was just too much, and the fishermen could no longer cover their costs.

“They [Louisiana shrimpers] see their lives as a long chain going back five or six generations,” Margaret continued. “They think, ‘why is it that all of these people were able to provide food for their families, and now I’ve got all the best equipment, and I can’t even pay my phone bill?’”

Confronted with the drastic drop in prices paid to shrimpers, Margaret began working for the Louisiana Shrimp Association, where she does legislative outreach and works to raise public awareness of the challenges faced by Louisiana shrimpers. These challenges, Margaret fears, may be insurmountable.  Fewer and fewer processing plants are purchasing wild shrimp, choosing instead the steady flow of cheap imports.

“People are getting pressed to their limit. There’s been a steady influx of people having heart attacks, young guys in their forties that are totally healthy. We’ve had a couple of them die from overdoses and we’ve had drug and alcohol abuse going through the roof.”

However, Margaret has not given up the fight for her community’s way of life. She joined an international network called the World Forum of Fish Harvesters and Fishworkers and is a founding member of the Commercial Fishermen of America. She met with industrial shrimp producers in China and will be attending Nyeleni 2007: The World Food Sovereignty Forum in Mali.  Activism, a positive attitude and a love of laughter have kept Margaret going during these rough times.

“I find solace in my activism. The international work has really put it all into perspective. No matter how much it hurts, this is something we can deal with.”