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Special Coverage: No Kings II and July 4th Protests

Special Coverage: No Kings II and July 4th Protests
A counter protester riding a chicken costume taunts protesters during a rain storm some in Miami call the 2 o'clock rain. Photo Credit Philip Cardella copyright 2025.

While perhaps 8,000 descended upon the Torch of Friendship on June 14th aka "No Kings Day" about 200 hundred gathered in the rain on July 4th for "No Kings II" in the same location. Meanwhile, local media reported 30-50, once again in front of Alligator Alcatraz an hour to the west around 6 PM on Fourth of July, standing in silent protest.

I passed by Alligator Alcatraz at about 2 PM and saw a few protesters then too.

Tourist destination sign for "Alligator Alcatraz" points the way inside Big Cypress National Preserve recreation area. Photo Credit Philip Cardella Copyright 2025.

Speakers gave fiery, emotional and often profanity laced speeches, particularly after the man dressed as a chicken riding cowboy provoked the crowd. Some in the crowd say he was a pardoned January 6 convict and white supremacist. I personally never heard anything he said.

I always admire vastly outnumbered counter protesters finding ways to get attention at a protest. The counter protester agitated the crowd greatly, with one speaker using the mic to yell that he, the counter protester, essentially had no right to be on the same side of the street as the protesters.

Freedom of speech says otherwise. As NBC 6 South Florida summed up their report of the protest:

Of course, [the counter protester] intended to create a scene and he did, but Miami Police officers made sure everything remained peaceful and everyone was able to exercise their First Amendment rights. 
Just as our founding fathers intended.
A clearer view of the counter protester chickenboy (as opposed to a cowboy, I think) standing in the rain surrounded by protesters. Photo Credit Philip Cardella Copyright 2025.

The speakers, including the woman who told him to go to the other side of the street, more than countered his counter protest through passionate speeches. The woman speaker admitted to being a former hardcore supporter of the President who is now horrified and calling for impeachment, conviction and removal of the Chief Executive. I wasn't able to get a good photo of her, unfortunately.

Former Marine Sergeant Rhodes, who says he is a combat veteran, provided one of several impassioned speeches at the event. Photo Credit Philip Cardella Copyright 2025.

A former Marine who called himself Sergeant Rhodes was among the speakers that followed who made similar demands. Also a speaker at a previous protest at the Torch of Friendship, Sergeant Rhodes impressed upon the crowd that in the Corps, there were only two colors, green and light green, referring to the uniforms of the Marines.

A protester in a rain cover holds a sign that reads "Hate never made America Great." Photo Credit Philip Cardella Copyright 2025.

Another protester, whose name I did not catch, accused the current Administration's policies of putting millions of people abroad and at home in life threatening danger (video to come).

From my perspective, the horns didn't blare as often as they did on June 14th and the crowd was clearly smaller, but the speakers were passionate and the counter-protester in costume suggesting he was riding a hen like a cowboy (or chickenboy?) was creative in expressing his rights too.

All while the Florida rain, as it does almost every day in the summer, poured on protesters, counter protesters, reporters and tourists alike.

Protesters hold banners that read, from left to right, "Just(ice)" with ICE crossed out and "Remove Trump" with the donkey and the elephant symbols of the two parties. Photo Credit Philip Cardella Copyright 2025.

More photos and (eventually) video can be found here.