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This resistance isn't broadcast, though it may feature webbed feet and large eyes.

Additionally, it could include the horn of a unicorn or the plumage of a chicken.

Whilst protests opposing the leadership persist in American cities, participants are adopting the vibe of a neighborhood dress-up party. They have taught dance instruction, distributed snacks, and ridden unicycles, while police watch.

Blending comedy and political action – a strategy social scientists refer to as "tactical frivolity" – is not new. Yet it has transformed into a signature characteristic of American protest in this period, used by both left and right.

A specific icon has risen to become particularly salient – the frog. It originated after a video of an encounter between a protester in an inflatable frog and ICE agents in the city of Portland, became an internet sensation. And it has since spread to protests throughout the United States.

"A great deal happening with that little blow-up amphibian," notes LM Bogad, who teaches at University of California, Davis and an academic who studies creative activism.

The Path From Pepe to Portland

It is difficult to discuss demonstrations and amphibians without addressing Pepe, a web comic frog embraced by online communities during a previous presidential campaign.

When the meme initially spread on the internet, it was used to express specific feelings. Subsequently, it was deployed to express backing for a candidate, even one notable meme shared by that figure personally, showing the frog with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in certain internet forums in offensive ways, as a historical dictator. Users traded "unique frog images" and established cryptocurrency in his name. His catchphrase, "that feels good", became a shared phrase.

However the character did not originate this divisive.

The artist behind it, the illustrator, has stated about his disapproval for its co-option. The character was intended as simply an apolitical figure in his series.

The frog debuted in comic strips in the mid-2000s – non-political and notable for a particular bathroom habit. A film, which chronicles the creator's attempt to wrest back control of his creation, he said his drawing was inspired by his experiences with companions.

As he started out, the artist experimented with sharing his art to the nascent social web, where people online began to copy, alter, and reinterpret his character. When the meme proliferated into darker parts of the internet, Mr Furie tried to disavow the frog, even killing him off in a comic strip.

Yet the frog persisted.

"It shows that creators cannot own imagery," states the professor. "They transform and be repurposed."

Previously, the popularity of this meme resulted in frogs were largely associated with the right. A transformation occurred on a day in October, when an incident between a protestor wearing a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland spread rapidly online.

This incident came just days after an order to deploy the National Guard to Portland, which was described as "war-ravaged". Protesters began to gather in droves at a specific location, near a federal building.

The situation was tense and an immigration officer sprayed pepper spray at the individual, aiming directly into the opening of the costume.

Seth Todd, the man in the costume, reacted humorously, stating it tasted like "spicier tamales". But the incident became a sensation.

The costume was not too unusual for Portland, renowned for its unconventional spirit and left-wing protests that revel in the unusual – outdoor exercise, 80s-style aerobics lessons, and nude cycling groups. Its creed is "Embrace the Strange."

This symbol became part of in the ensuing legal battle between the administration and the city, which claimed the deployment was illegal.

Although a ruling was issued in October that the president had the right to deploy troops, one judge dissented, mentioning demonstrators' "known tendency for using unusual attire while voicing opposition."

"It is easy to see this decision, which accepts the description of Portland as a war zone, as merely absurd," Judge Susan Graber wrote. "But today's decision is not merely absurd."

The deployment was stopped legally subsequently, and personnel withdrew from the area.

However, by that time, the frog was now a potent protest icon for the left.

The inflatable suit was spotted across the country at anti-authoritarian protests that fall. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in small towns and global metropolises abroad.

This item was sold out on online retailers, and saw its cost increase.

Shaping the Narrative

What brings the two amphibian symbols – is the dynamic between the silly, innocent image and underlying political significance. This concept is "tactical frivolity."

This approach relies on what the professor terms the "irresistible image" – usually humorous, it acts as a "disarming and charming" display that draws focus to a cause without obviously explaining them. This is the silly outfit you wear, or the symbol you share.

The professor is both an expert in the subject and an experienced participant. He authored a text called 'Tactical Performance', and led seminars internationally.

"One can look back to the Middle Ages – under oppressive regimes, absurd humor is used to express dissent a little bit and while maintaining a layer of protection."

The purpose of this approach is three-fold, Mr Bogad says.

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