I’m a fisherman not a fisher, says first female to reel in top title
Winner rejects ‘woke’ terminology, saying she does not want to detract from industry traditions
THE first female winner of the Fisherman of the Year award has said she chooses to identify as a “fisherman” in a rejection of “woke” gender-neutral alternatives.
Ashley Mullenger said she was proud to stick to tradition after her triumph this week at the Fishing News Awards, the recognised industry ceremony.
The 35-year-old, who has been commercially fishing off the Norfolk coast since 2018, is the first woman to win the award for under-10-metre vessels since versions of the prize were first awarded in 1913. But she dismissed calls from activists to swap the term fishermen for fisherpeople, fisherfolk or fishers, to be inclusive of women and transgender people.
Last year, BBC Radio 4’s Today programme was ridiculed after it used the word “fisherpeople”.
Instead, Mrs Mullenger has joined forces with 17-year-old apprentice skipper Isla Gale and Dorset angler Mollie Smart, both of whom made the awards shortlist, to write an open letter to Fishing News defending “fisherman”. “Sometimes you run the risk of this whole woke culture, but I choose to identify as a fisherman,” she told The Daily Telegraph from her trawler.
“Most of the women I know in this industry would rather identify as a fisherman than fisher or fisherwoman. The word ‘fisher’ is vile.”
Explaining the choice, she added: “It’s a very traditional job that’s been done for hundreds of years mainly by men and we’re really proud to have that title and also we don’t want to take away from the hard work that men have done to build this industry in the first place.
“It’s better and healthier to normalise women in this space.”
The stance is backed by Fishing News, which found in a poll of skippers that the industry wants to keep the term.
While only a handful of women go out to sea, Mrs Mullenger said she had seen “really positive” growth. She now knows 16 female fishermen, rising from three when she joined the sector four years ago.
Her Instagram account, the Female Fisherman, has attracted 7,400 followers, while the UK Women in Fisheries network has been established to get more women out at sea.
“Don’t get me wrong, there are improvements that could be made for women in the industry, it’s very hard to find commercial gear that fit women, but the attitude towards women in the industry is very supportive,” she said.
The National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations has dismissed “fisherpeople” as a clumsy term.