CAPE COD – “We the people,” concerned about the existential threat to American democracy, gathered in thousands of cities and towns across America yesterday, June 14, 2025 to protest the country’s turn towards authoritarianism.
Cape Cod Wave Magazine attended two of the small-town gatherings here on Cape Cod – one at each end of the Cape: Falmouth and Provincetown. Above is a video of some of the signs and people we saw in each of those towns.
Thanks especially to The Buttercups for the music that accompanies this video. The Buttercups are Chandler Travis on guitar and vocals and Rikki Bates on drums. (Click here to buy music by Chandler Travis, a true Cape legend, and a Cape Cod Wave favorite)
These two rallies were among the largest protests we have ever seen on the Cape. Each had an urgent, yet optimistic feel to them.
In Falmouth, protesters gathered on the Village Green, where the colonial militia had trained during the Revolutionary War.
In Provincetown, protesters gathered at Bas Relief Park, with a bronze depiction of the signing of the Mayflower Compact. On the hill above the park is the Pilgrim Monument.
There was some degree of symbolism in the location of each protest.
The threat is clearly real. The long-time American belief, which held especially true here on our idyllic sandbar of Cape Cod, was encapsulated in the saying, It can’t happen here.
The undeniable truth is that it is already happening here.
The secret police force of ICE, operating like Hitler’s German Gestapo, have been to Cape Cod and both islands – Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Island.
We are a tourist community with pockets of immigrants all throughout the region. These are our neighbors. Our friends. And they contribute in countless ways to helping make this area function.
We have always tried our best to think of Cape Cod as a place a bit separate from the drama of a divided America. Sure, we have our differences here but it always felt like “that America” was on the other side of the canal. But we were wrong.
The American drama is right here. And people here have noticed. Obviously.
No Kings in America. We thought that was settled in 1776, and was sort of the whole point of starting the United States Constitution with those three sacred words: “We the people.”
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Finally, on a much lighter note, check out this video of a Donald Trump impersonator we found at a Provincetown restaurant and giving his opinion on why he, “Donald Trump” loves Provincetown so much.
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Cape Cod Wave Magazine covers the character & culture of Cape Cod. Please see our Longform stories.
Other Cape Cod Wave stories on politics
Other Cape Cod Wave Essays
–PLEASE SEE You Can’t Sell Right Field, a novel from Cape Cod Wave about land for sale, a crooked developer, a softball team called, “The Townies,” and an election.
