Mr. Clucky Goes to Court and Gets the Boot

If you’ve ever visited South Beach and strolled down Lincoln Road, chances are that you’ve seen Mr. Clucky.

He is the rooster that rides on the handlebars of a blue spray painted bicycle operated by Mark Buckley, a lanky man in overalls.

If you haven’t seen the pair, then you really haven’t seen Lincoln Road.  For they are as much as part of Lincoln Road as the fashionistas in their short skirts and the men in the Ed Hardys and the lesbians holding hands and the beggars scrounging for change and the waiters sporting attitude and that one guy who acts like a statue on some days and like a ballerina on other days.

City says “get the cluck out of Miami Beach”

But on Thursday, the City of Miami Beach rejected Buckley’s appeal to keep the rooster from being evicted. They say Mr. Clucky has to go because he is a farm animal. And farm animals, they say, do not belong in a closet of a cramped studio apartment, even if it is just a stone’s throw from Lincoln Road.

They apparently belong on a farm where they can get debeaked and declawed and eventually beheaded.

But Buckley has been fighting this eviction hard. He is a vegetarian and animal activist who makes the Birdman of Alcatraz look like Colonel Sanders.

And he has attained the support of friends, fans and fellow activists who gathered Wednesday night for a candlelight vigil in front of city hall in preparation for Buckley’s appeal hearing this morning.

Now that the city has ruled against him, Buckley must pay a $50 fine and if he continues harboring the bird in his home, Mr. Clucky could be forcibly removed from the home in the style of Elian Gonzalez.

And that is guaranteed to generate a national media frenzy. After all, Mr. Clucky has already been featured in various national television segments, including The Today Show. And he even has his own website.

But Buckley still has some legal maneuvers left, so the fight is not yet dead.

Lincoln Road strutting

The first time you see them cruising down Lincoln Road, you might do a double take because it is not something you would expect to see on pedestrian walkway where everybody is trying so hard to look cool, trying so hard to get noticed, trying so hard to look like they are not trying so hard.

And if you show a hint of an interest, perhaps a nod and a smile in his direction, Buckley will stop the bike and tell you about the time he saved Mr. Clucky from a Santeria ritual gone bad.

It is a story he has repeated a thousand times and will gladly repeat a thousand more times. And if you’re not from Miami, you might not understand the significance of this, but Santeria rituals encourage the sacrificing of chickens by beheading them.

Buckley will also tell you about how Mr. Clucky has visited schools and participated in protests and was even honored as Grand Marshal of a local parade.

Then he will grab Mr. Clucky and place him on his shoulders and allow you to take photos. Then he’ll give you a business card and tell you about the upcoming movie.  Yes, the movie.

It is clear that Buckley loves his chicken.

Above: A Michael Jackson impersonator mime shows his support for Mr. Clucky atop the roof of the Sony building on Lincoln Road.

Above: Adam Schachner shows his support for Mr. Clucky by riding his bicycle with other cyclists to participate in the candlelight vigil.

Related Categories: Miami: Local News, Miscellaneous, Carlos Miller is a featured writer at Miami Beach 411. He also operates Photography is Not a Crime, a blog about photographer rights, New Media and First Amendment issues. See more articles by Carlos Miller. See more articles by Carlos Miller Was This Post Helpful? Please Share It With Others! Tweet

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