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This resistance may not be televised, but it could have webbed feet and large eyes.

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

As protests opposing the government carry on in American cities, participants have embraced the energy of a local block party. They've offered dance instruction, distributed treats, and performed on unicycles, while armed law enforcement look on.

Combining humour and political action – a tactic experts term "tactical frivolity" – has historical precedent. But it has become a signature characteristic of US demonstrations in the current era, embraced by both left and right.

One particular emblem has risen to become especially powerful – the frog. It originated when a video of an encounter between a man in an amphibian costume and immigration enforcement agents in Portland, Oregon, went viral. And it has since spread to protests throughout the United States.

"A great deal happening with that humble frog costume," notes an expert, who teaches at University of California, Davis and an academic who studies performance art.

The Path From a Cartoon Frog to the Streets of Portland

It's challenging to talk about demonstrations and amphibians without addressing Pepe, an illustrated figure adopted by far-right groups during an election cycle.

Initially, when this image first took off online, people used it to signal specific feelings. Afterwards, it was deployed to express backing for a candidate, even one notable meme endorsed by the candidate himself, showing the frog with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in right-wing online communities in darker contexts, portrayed as a hate group member. Online conservatives traded "unique frog images" and established digital currency using its likeness. His catchphrase, "feels good, man", was used a coded signal.

But its beginnings were not so controversial.

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

The frog debuted in an online comic in the mid-2000s – apolitical and notable for a quirky behavior. A film, which documents Mr Furie's efforts to wrest back control of his work, he stated the character came from his time with friends and roommates.

When he began, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to new websites, where the community began to copy, alter, and reinterpret his character. As Pepe spread into the more extreme corners of the internet, Mr Furie sought to reject the frog, even killing him off in a comic strip.

But Pepe lived on.

"It proves that creators cannot own icons," says the professor. "They transform and be repurposed."

Previously, the popularity of this meme meant that frogs were predominantly linked to the right. But that changed on a day in October, when a confrontation between an activist dressed in a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland spread rapidly online.

This incident followed an order to deploy military personnel to Portland, which was described as "war-ravaged". Activists began to congregate at a specific location, near a federal building.

Tensions were high and an agent used pepper spray at a protester, targeting the air intake fan of the costume.

The protester, Seth Todd, quipped, stating it tasted like "something milder". Yet the footage spread everywhere.

The costume was somewhat typical for Portland, renowned for its unconventional spirit and activist demonstrations that revel in the unusual – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and unique parades. A local saying is "Embrace the Strange."

The frog was also referenced in the ensuing legal battle between the federal government and Portland, which contended the deployment overstepped authority.

Although the court ruled in October that the president had the right to send personnel, one judge dissented, noting in her opinion demonstrators' "known tendency for donning inflatable costumes when expressing dissent."

"It is easy to see the court's opinion, which accepts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," Judge Susan Graber wrote. "But today's decision is not merely absurd."

The action was stopped legally soon after, and personnel have reportedly departed the area.

Yet already, the amphibian costume had become a potent protest icon for progressive movements.

The inflatable suit was seen in many cities at No Kings protests recently. There were frogs – along with other creatures – in major US cities. They appeared in small towns and global metropolises abroad.

The frog costume was sold out on online retailers, and saw its cost increase.

Mastering the Optics

The link between the two amphibian symbols – is the interplay between the humorous, benign cartoon and underlying political significance. This is what "tactical frivolity."

The tactic relies on what the professor calls the "irresistible image" – usually humorous, it acts as a "appealing and non-threatening" display that draws focus to a message without needing obviously explaining them. It's the goofy costume you wear, or the symbol circulated.

The professor is an analyst in the subject and a veteran practitioner. He's written a book on the subject, and led seminars around the world.

"One can look back to historical periods – when people are dominated, they use absurdity to express dissent indirectly and while maintaining a layer of protection."

The theory of this approach is three-fold, he explains.

As activists confront a powerful opposition, a silly costume {takes control of|seizes|influences