WASHINGTON — During two decades in the fishing business, recreational charter boat captain Mike Rowell of Fairhope never participated in a protest on the industry's behalf.
Until Wednesday, that is, when he and his wife joined a noontime throng outside the U.S. Capitol angling for relief from increasingly stringent catch limits on red snapper and other prized saltwater fish around the country.
"We need flexibility," Rowell said afterward.
That sentiment was widespread in the boisterous crowd assembled for the three-hour "United We Fish" rally organized by the New Jersey-based Recreational Fishing Alliance and other groups.
The stricter rules are "putting everybody out of business," said Biloxi resident Tom Becker, who heads the Mississippi Charter Boat Captain's Association. "We were down 50 percent last year, and we can't take much more."