June 21, 2017 — Out on the docks of Menemsha on Martha’s Vineyard, Wes Brighton rigged up lobster pots he planned to set the next day.
In an ideal world, he’d also be fishing for other species — like scallops and groundfish — but he can’t afford the expensive government-issued permits that would grant him the fishing rights.
“They’ve turned a public resource into a commodity, and they haven’t limited the people who can own that commodity to commercial fisherman,” Brighton said. “And so a fisherman who wants to go catch scallop quota inside of a small community, like we have here on Martha’s Vineyard, can’t access that … without coming up with a ton of money. “
The fishing boats and docks of Menemsha present a postcard view of Martha’s Vineyard. But through Brighton’s eyes, there’s more to the picture.
“Every time you look somewhere you are losing dock space on our own town dock, which has always been allocated to commercial fishing,” he said. “And just recently we lost a big chunk to a charter boat. It’s up to us to keep this fight because if we lose our tradition, we lose our heritage, and that’s something we just can’t let [happen].”