Fish still missing, traditions extinct 30 years after N.L. cod moratorium

Fish still missing, traditions extinct 30 years after N.L. cod moratorium

Source: CBC News

7/2/2022

Credit: Brett Favaro, Marine Institute

John Williams wishes he could say the cod moratorium of 1992 feels like it was yesterday.

But after losing his livelihood and reinventing himself a few times over, he's felt every one of the past 30 years.

Williams was one of about 30,000 people put out of work when the federal government brought an end to the northern cod fishery on July 2, 1992. It's a date that still stirs up feelings from a solemn and desperate chapter in Newfoundland and Labrador's history.

"It was a pretty sad time to know that you weren't going to go fishing anymore," Williams said.

"At the time I had three kids, and they had to be fed, go to school, and be clothed. It was tough."

It doesn't help Williams that he's constantly reminded of his small role in history — being the person who prompted former Fisheries Minister John Crosbie to utter some of his most famous words.