The Pledge of Allegiance ends with the phrase “with liberty and justice for all.” U.S. fishermen, who, as children, would recite this every morning before starting school, have come to question this phrase. Today, “justice for all” seems to have forgotten the U.S. Pacific Island fishermen. Between the constant shrinking of the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) by the federal government decreasing the waters available for fishing, the ever increasing foreign fishing presence on the seas and in the markets, and using the Pacific Islands to shoulder the burden of the American conservation ethos, justice has turned into “just us.” As the pledge of allegiance binds us to the principles of unity and fairness, so too must the U.S. approach to fisheries by providing justice for equitable access, fair treatment of fishing communities and preservation of sustainable fishing.
