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This revolution may not be broadcast, though it may feature amphibious toes and protruding eyes.

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

While demonstrations against the administration carry on in American cities, demonstrators have embraced the energy of a community costume parade. They've provided dance instruction, given away treats, and ridden unicycles, as police look on.

Blending humour and political action – a tactic social scientists call "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. But it has become a hallmark of protests in the United States in this period, embraced by both left and right.

One particular emblem has risen to become notably significant – the frog. It originated after video footage of a clash between an individual in a frog suit and immigration enforcement agents in Portland, Oregon, spread online. And it has since spread to protests across the country.

"There's a lot going on with that humble blow-up amphibian," states a professor, a professor at UC Davis and an academic who focuses on performance art.

The Path From a Cartoon Frog to Portland

It is difficult to discuss protests and frogs without addressing Pepe, a web comic frog embraced by far-right groups throughout an election cycle.

As the character initially spread on the internet, it was used to signal specific feelings. Later, its use evolved to express backing for a political figure, including a particular image shared by the candidate himself, showing the frog with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in certain internet forums in offensive ways, portrayed as a hate group member. Online conservatives traded "unique frog images" and set up digital currency using its likeness. His catchphrase, "feels good, man", was used a shared phrase.

Yet Pepe didn't start out this divisive.

The artist behind it, artist Matt Furie, has been vocal about his distaste for its co-option. His creation was meant as simply a relaxed amphibian in this artist's universe.

The frog first appeared in a series of comics in 2005 – non-political and best known for a particular bathroom habit. In a documentary, which follows Mr Furie's efforts to reclaim ownership of his creation, he explained his drawing came from his experiences with friends and roommates.

When he began, the artist tried sharing his art to early internet platforms, where the community began to copy, alter, and reinterpret the frog. As Pepe spread into fringe areas of online spaces, the creator tried to disavow his creation, even killing him off in a comic strip.

However, its legacy continued.

"It proves that we don't control icons," explains the professor. "They transform and be reworked."

For a long time, the association of Pepe resulted in amphibian imagery were largely associated with the right. A transformation occurred recently, when an incident between a protestor dressed in a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland went viral.

The moment came just days after an order to send military personnel to the city, which was described as "a warzone". Protesters began to congregate at a specific location, just outside of a federal building.

The situation was tense and an agent used irritant at a protester, targeting the ventilation of the puffy frog costume.

Seth Todd, Seth Todd, quipped, remarking it tasted like "something milder". However, the video became a sensation.

The costume was not too unusual for Portland, known for its unconventional spirit and activist demonstrations that delight in the absurd – outdoor exercise, 80s-style aerobics lessons, and nude cycling groups. The city's unofficial motto is "Keep Portland Weird."

This symbol even played a role in a lawsuit between the administration and the city, which claimed the deployment was unlawful.

While a judge decided in October that the president had the right to send personnel, a minority opinion disagreed, referencing in her ruling the protesters' "well-known penchant for wearing chicken suits while voicing opposition."

"Some might view this decision, which adopts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," she wrote. "Yet the outcome has serious implications."

The order was stopped legally subsequently, and troops have reportedly departed the area.

Yet already, the frog was now a potent symbol of resistance for progressive movements.

This symbol was spotted nationwide at anti-authoritarian protests that fall. Frogs appeared – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in small towns and big international cities like Tokyo and London.

This item was backordered on major websites, and became more expensive.

Shaping the Optics

What brings the two amphibian symbols – lies in the dynamic between the humorous, benign cartoon and serious intent. This concept is "tactical frivolity."

The tactic rests on what the professor terms a "disarming display" – frequently absurd, it's a "appealing and non-threatening" display that highlights a cause without needing directly articulating them. It's the goofy costume used, or the meme circulated.

The professor is both an expert on this topic and an experienced participant. He authored a book on the subject, and taught workshops around the world.

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

The purpose of this approach is multi-faceted, he explains.

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